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Nairobi, Kenya (13 January 2009)—Responding to sub-Saharan
Africa's soil health crisis, the International Center for
Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) announced today an ambitious new
effort to produce the first-ever, detailed digital soil map
for all 42 countries of the region. This project combines
the latest soil science and technology with remote satellite
imagery and on-the-ground efforts to analyze thousands of
soil samples from remote areas across the continent to help
provide solutions for poor farmers, who suffer from chronically
low-yielding crops largely because of degraded soils.
 Efforts
to improve African soils, which are among the most depleted
on earth, have been hampered by a lack of up-to-date, comprehensive
knowledge about current soil conditions. This information
is critical to identify the types and amounts of mineral and
organic nutrient sources needed to increase crop yields. The
need for action is hard to ignore; according to FAO, one in
three people—or 236 million (2007)—in Sub-Saharan
Africa are chronically hungry.
The African Soil Information Service, or AfSIS, will respond
to that need by making up-to-date assessments of soil properties.
Researchers will probe the landscape of sub-Saharan Africa,
using a variety of highly accurate digital soil mapping techniques
to create detailed soil maps, which will be available on the
Internet. Data provided by AfSIS at the regional, national
and local levels will help farmers and agricultural experts
identify the best options for sustainably improving crop production
through better soil management.
Work on AfSIS is supported through a four-year grant of US$18
million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the
Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). CIAT's Nairobi-based
Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility (TSBF) Institute will
lead the effort. The new digital soil map will ultimately
be developed as part of a global soil mapping initiative,
called GlobalSoilMap.net.
 "Soil
management in sub-Saharan Africa must be improved dramatically
if we are to reduce poverty, feed growing populations and
cope with the impact of climate change on agriculture,"
said Dr. Nteranya Sanginga of CIAT, which is one of 15 centers
supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research (CGIAR). "Achieving this requires accurate,
up-to-date information on the state of Africa's soils."
"This project will benefit farm families in Africa by
showing how they can reverse the trend of declining soil fertility,
a major reason for slow growth in the region's agricultural
productivity during recent decades," said Dr. Namanga
Ngongi, president of AGRA.
AfSIS will use innovative remote sensing technology via satellite
to create detailed images of large areas indicating nutrients,
moisture and organic matter in the soil. It will also use
infrared spectroscopy to analyze the chemical and physical
properties and organic matter of soil samples. Commonly used
in the medical industry, this latter technique is now being
used in agriculture, to perform quick assessments of the soil's
capacity to retain water and absorb nutrients.
All soil information will be collected and made available
via the Internet in a user-friendly manner. AfSIS experts
will offer training to agricultural extension agents and others
on how to interpret and translate information provided by
the soil map for practical application.
 Agricultural
policy makers will find the information helpful for developing
recommendations about the types, blends and amounts of fertilizers
and other soil supplements that are most appropriate for improving
harvests in particular regions. The project will pinpoint
areas where soils are at risk and provide detailed information
on interventions that have proved effective for deterring
soil degradation. The data will also provide insights on the
environmental and human factors (such as weather patterns
and population growth) associated with soil degradation and
with the improvement of soil health.
"Helping small farmers increase their yields and incomes
is one of the most important things that world can do to alleviate
hunger and poverty," said Dr. Rajiv Shah, director of
Agricultural Development at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
"Access to better information about their soil will empower
African farmers to use methods tailored to their conditions
so they can boost their productivity and build better lives."
Partners in the effort include the Earth Institute at Columbia
University, the World Soil Information (ISRIC) at Wageningen
University in The Netherlands and the Nairobi-based World
Agroforestry Center. AfricanSoils.net will initiate collaboration
with national agricultural research programs across Africa,
including the establishment of regional soil health laboratories
in Tanzania, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, and Malawi.
AfSIS in the News
For background information, images, and maps, please visit
the online press room at: http://www.ciat.cgiar.org/afsis/index.html
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