SOIL FERTILITY MAINTENANCE AND FOOD CROP PRODUCTION IN SEMIARID WEST-AFRICA - IS RELIANCE ON MANURE A SUSTAINABLE STRATEGY

Animal manure is of vital importance in maintaining soil fertility in semiarid west Africa due to the low level of use of inorganic fertiliz er, Using data from Niger however, it is shown that insufficient anima ls are available to provide the manure needed to sustain crop yields o n a long-term basis, The limitations posed by animal numbers and feed availability imply that with the increasing intensity of land use in N iger and other countries in the region, manure alone will not provide the key to attaining sustainable yield levels, External inputs in the form of inorganic fertilizers are needed, However, the gap between pre sent fertilizer use and the required level is wide, To ensure the avai lability and increased use of fertilizers at the farm level, appropria te public policies are needed to ease the constraints that have inhibi ted the widespread use of fertilizers in semiarid west Africa.