Poor farmers and herders in countries bearing the brunt of desertification and land degradation can help stop or reverse those processes by engaging in sustainable agriculture, the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) says.
Poor farmers and herders in countries bearing
the brunt of desertification and land degradation can help stop or
reverse those processes by engaging in sustainable agriculture, the
United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
says. Marking World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, which is
observed on 17 June, IFAD said in a statement that poor farmers and
herders can form part of the solution with the assistance of
international agencies. !ADVERTISEMENT!
“Ill-conceived agricultural practices, traditional or intensified, only
make things worse as their poor populations have no choice but to adopt
short-term survival methods, putting more pressure on increasingly
scarce local resources,†IFAD said. “Climate change is increasing that
pressure, and exacerbating droughts.â€
The agency called for more efficient water use, improved cropping
systems and better forest management, adding that hardier seeds will
also help poor farmers withstand droughts and floods.
IFAD, which is tasked with reducing rural poverty, said more than two
thirds of its projects are now located in ecologically fragile and
marginal areas, where nearly half the world’s poor live.