User:Nova.WIM/Soil fertility

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Many countries in Africa also have undergone a depletion of fertile soil. In sub-Saharan Africa, countries such as South Sudan, Mali, Ethiopia, and Nigeria have faced high rates of soil nutrient depletion. Soil degradation in sub-Saharan Africa is generally attributed to expanded agricultural efforts in light of population increases. Soils are failing to produce the food necessary to support the people of these regions, which is primarily due to a lack of nutrients required for crop production. Soil fertility has declined in the farming regions of Africa, and the use of artificial and natural fertilizers has been used to replenish the nutrients in the ground soil.

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Nutrient depletion in the soils of Ethiopia accounts is the dominant factor that has led to a decrease in crop yields in Ethiopia. Though calculations on the matter have a high level of uncertainty, it has been found that soil erosion is the key function that has led to the rise of nutrient depletion within Ethiopia. Though there have been efforts to fend off soil depletion, in Southern Mali, there are still significant deficits between the amount of Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Magnesium that were added versus the amount lost to erosion, crop extraction, and leaching. The products of nutrient depletion is a significant portion of the GDP in many countries in Sub Saharan Africa, with the average being 7% and the highest value being 25%. Nutrient depletion is the main factor impacting food production in Sub Saharan Africa, which is especially detrimental because this region is highly dependent on agriculture. This nutrient depletion can lead to further deforestation because the farmers are forced to abandoned depleted soil in favor of fertile soil that is currently covered by trees. Many sources have placed the onus for repairing soil depletion should be placed upon the farmers, but these farmers often lack the resources necessary to choose alternative methods of cultivation. Mineral fertilizer has been shown to be the most effective way to reverse the effects of nutrient mining; it is important to keep in mind that, while in industrialized countries, excessive fertilizer has led to negative environmental outcomes, underuse and a lack of access to fertilizer is the pressing environmental threat within most of Africa. The decreased crop yields have a severe implication of poverty within sub-Saharan Africa, which impedes development efforts in the agricultural sector and elsewhere. Soil depletion has been found to varying degrees across all the nations of Africa, but there are standout nations that are in particularly dire straits in regard to nutrient deficiency. In one wide-scale study, 44 countries were studied, of these 44 countries, 23 were found to have nutrient depletion levels of 60% or higher, which was considered to be high.