SOIL DEGRADATION AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF SEMI-ARID PASTORAL SYSTEMS:THE CASE OF THE JAKUSKO-NASARE GRAZING RESERVE YOBE STATE, NIGERIA.
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Abstract
Grazing reserves in the semi-arid region or Nigeria were first proposed as a means of pastoral development during the colonial regime in the late 1940s. The main objective was to settle the I'ulani pastoralists in areas where livestock service could be rendered and crop production could be introduced to supplement household income while agricultural residues could provide fodder for (he herd. Unfortunately, such a policy did not take into consideration the long term effects of continued grazing on the reserves. This overgrazing which subsequently led to reduction in vegetation cover the development and acceleration of erosion and intensification of the process of range deterioration became eminent in the 1990s. This paper seeks to provide quantitative evidence on the extent of soil deterioration in one of the hugest grazing reserves in semi-arid Nigeria. It is hoped that the results of this study will help government to provide a policy that will create incentive for soil-preserving land management practice in the next millennium.