Assessing Farm-level Limitations and Potentials for Organic Agriculture by Agro-ecological Zones and Development Domains in Northern Nigeria of West Africa

Traditional Farming Practices: Espousal and Committed by Farmers in Northern Senatorial Districts of Gombe State, North – eastern Nigeria

“…Composting as observed by Singh and George (2012) in their article Awareness and beliefs of farmers in Uttrakhand India noted that compost manure has the capacity to improve the activity of beneficial micro and macro flora in the soil thereby fulfilling sufficiently the demands of crops in terms of soil nutrients. Also, Ouédraogo et al, (2001) showed that the role of compost in sustaining yield and improving soil quality were long been known by our farmers but lack of adequate training couple with unavailability of equipment's make it almost impossible in achieving adequate compost usage by our indigenous farmers, Olayide et al, (2011) in assessing farm-level limitations and potentials for organic agriculture in northern Nigeria, discovered that the current levels of compost use among the variables, in terms of minimum requirements for launching, in organic agriculture in Nigeria was low despite its promising prospects. Use of cover crops was well known among peasant farmers of northern Nigeria to reduce evaporation of water from the soil as well as erosion by wind, more so Dabney et al, (2001) in their treatise on plant analysis vis a vis soil and water quality through the use of cover crops asserted that cover crops improve soil quality via series of complex microbial and other physical soil parameters interaction, also Langdale et al, (1991) resolved that cover crops drop soil erosion by 62 per cent based on an evaluation of bare soil and soil planted with a cover crop in the south eastern United States of America.…”

Assessing the Transition from Survival to Sustainability: Case of Wechiau Community Hippo Sanctuary in Upper West Region of Ghana, West Africa

“…The revenue that is generated is ploughed to the development of basic social infrastructures like schools, water and sanitation facilities and local resort for visitors. (Olayide et al, 2011).…”

“…Further, it has been noted that sustainable use of ecosystem services promotes enhancement of its regulating, supporting and cultural potentials, which means increased production (per unit area) of the services, including recreational and aesthetic benefits of natural resources. Olayide et al (2011), Kinzig et al (2006), Wesley et al (2002, and Kinzig (2001) have demonstrated the need to couple ecological and socioeconomic domains when examining dynamics of systems of natural resource management. The conceptual framework used for the study (Figure 1) follows that of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) that suggests that changes in drivers that indirectly affect biodiversity, such as population, technology, and lifestyle, can lead to changes in drivers directly affecting biodiversity, such as the catch of fish (or hippos).…”