Soil survey, land evaluation and food security scenario in Nigeria

Abstract

Poverty and malnutrition are tragedies and their absence is the national development rubicon. They are captured in sustainable development goals (SDG) 1, 2 and 3 and remained intractable in most developing countries including Nigeria due to largely uncoordinated planning in majority of the facets of the country. The association of these goals (SDG 1, 2 and 3) with agriculture avails the sector a pivotal role and policy and planning becomes critical. The pivotal and critical role of planning in agriculture will be insignificant in the absence of a national soil classification system with accompanying detailed survey and land evaluation. This study highlighted the consequences of the absence of a pragmatic soil survey and land evaluation report for sustainable soil management and its implications to food security in Nigeria. The burden of poverty directly impacts the human dignity and Nigeria’s quest for economic diversification has become imminently indispensable because dependence on fossil fuel is losing its capacity to support growth and development. The primary focus and best option for diversification is agriculture with soil as the basis. This is not just for sustainable development, but for food production in a drive for food security and probably sovereignty. The first step in this drive is proper understanding of the soil resources of the nation through soil survey and land evaluation at a level of realization for sustainable pragmatic agricultural purposes. These are impossible in the absence of a uniform and nationally acceptable classification system (at least at the series level of United States Department of Agriculture Taxonomy) which possess numerous benefits to the extent that continued delay is very detrimental to the growth and development of any contemporary society. This is prior to the indispensable establishment of localized and indigenous classification system for Nigeria soils.