TY - JOUR T1 - Managing soils in Sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges and opportunities for soil and water conservation JF - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation SP - 44A LP - 48A DO - 10.2489/jswc.64.1.44A VL - 64 IS - 1 AU - Moses Makooma Tenywa AU - Mateete Bekunda Y1 - 2009/01/01 UR - http://www.jswconline.org/content/64/1/44A.abstract N2 - In this 21st century, agriculture continues to be an important sector for sustainable development and poverty reduction in Sub-Saharan Africa. Research indicates that 1% growth in this sector translates into 2.5% growth in income for the poor people in the region. However, such growth is still low and per capita food production has been insufficient and decreasing over time because it is based on smallholder agriculture that often provides insufficient incentives to use land resources sustainably. Compounding problems include volatility in input prices, markets, and climate, declining farm sizes as a result of rising population pressures, weak extension services, low adoption of improved technologies, and limited government investments. In addition, Sub-Saharan Africa continues to experience destructive extraction, over-exploitation, and inadequate conservation of soil and water. More work needs to be done to demonstrate to policy makers, development partners, and society at large the full contribution that will be made to poverty alleviation by increasing and sustaining agricultural productivity through investments in soil rehabilitation, water harvesting and utilization, and reduction of land degradation. Several success stories of local soil and water conservation activities practiced by farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa exist, but the challenge is to scale these successes to wider implementation. ER -