use practices have led to land degradation and have reduced the ecological and social
resilience of landscapes. This is evident in the declining productivity, especially in
connection with fragile ecosystems as well as the limited use of improved farming
techniques and inputs to ensure soil conservation. Soil and land degradation stemming from deforestation, pollution from pesticides, burning of grasslands and
organic residues, and continuous cultivation with minimum soil fertility enhancement leads to soil erosion and organic matter and nutrient depletion in these areas.
Other unsustainable land-use practices, such as overgrazing and mechanical tilling,
have produced compacted soil layers and often bare grounds in extreme cases in the
country.
The decline of soil fertility in Africa is closely connected with steep increases in
population. This has led to land fragmentation and a multiplicity of land ownership
arrangements due to increased dwelling demands.
According to the International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural Development, there is substantial soil decline in every major region of sub-Saharan Africa,
with the highest rates of depletion in Uganda, Guinea, Congo, Angola, Rwanda, and
Burundi. Land degradation in Uganda ranges from 20% in relatively flat and
vegetation-covered areas to 90% in the eastern and southwestern highlands.
Therefore, soil degradation is a major global problem. Its effects are felt most
strongly in developing countries where large proportions of the population reap their
livelihoods directly from the soil. Consequently, the maintenance of good soil
quality is thus vital for the environmental and economic sustainability of land use
activities—hence the need to effectively insert soil in public policies as a major
sector like all the others to which it is connected.
The world and the African region have developed several international and
regional instruments (which have been ratified by Uganda) that can be looked at in
recognition of the importance of soil conservation. These build up a good debate for
the inclusion of soil as a major sector in the environment.
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 1992 was ratified by Uganda in
1993. It aims at conserving biological diversity, promoting the sustainable use of its
components, and encouraging equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the
utilization of genetic resources, soil being one of them.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
1992 was signed by Uganda in 1992 and ratified in 1993. It was adopted to regulate
levels of greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere to avoid the occurrence of
climate change on a level that would compromise food production and to enable
economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner. In 2002, Uganda also
ratified the Kyoto Protocol 1998, a protocol to the UNFCCC.
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) 1994 was
signed by Uganda in 1996 and ratified in 1997. The convention accords the development of National Action Plans a central role in the strategy to combat desertification. The purpose of the National Action Plans is to identify the factors contributing
to desertification and practical measures necessary to combat desertification. Article
8 of the Regional Implementation Annex for Africa urges states to include adjustment of institutional and regulatory framework of natural resource management to
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Foreword
resilience of landscapes. This is evident in the declining productivity, especially in
connection with fragile ecosystems as well as the limited use of improved farming
techniques and inputs to ensure soil conservation. Soil and land degradation stemming from deforestation, pollution from pesticides, burning of grasslands and
organic residues, and continuous cultivation with minimum soil fertility enhancement leads to soil erosion and organic matter and nutrient depletion in these areas.
Other unsustainable land-use practices, such as overgrazing and mechanical tilling,
have produced compacted soil layers and often bare grounds in extreme cases in the
country.
The decline of soil fertility in Africa is closely connected with steep increases in
population. This has led to land fragmentation and a multiplicity of land ownership
arrangements due to increased dwelling demands.
According to the International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural Development, there is substantial soil decline in every major region of sub-Saharan Africa,
with the highest rates of depletion in Uganda, Guinea, Congo, Angola, Rwanda, and
Burundi. Land degradation in Uganda ranges from 20% in relatively flat and
vegetation-covered areas to 90% in the eastern and southwestern highlands.
Therefore, soil degradation is a major global problem. Its effects are felt most
strongly in developing countries where large proportions of the population reap their
livelihoods directly from the soil. Consequently, the maintenance of good soil
quality is thus vital for the environmental and economic sustainability of land use
activities—hence the need to effectively insert soil in public policies as a major
sector like all the others to which it is connected.
The world and the African region have developed several international and
regional instruments (which have been ratified by Uganda) that can be looked at in
recognition of the importance of soil conservation. These build up a good debate for
the inclusion of soil as a major sector in the environment.
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 1992 was ratified by Uganda in
1993. It aims at conserving biological diversity, promoting the sustainable use of its
components, and encouraging equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the
utilization of genetic resources, soil being one of them.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
1992 was signed by Uganda in 1992 and ratified in 1993. It was adopted to regulate
levels of greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere to avoid the occurrence of
climate change on a level that would compromise food production and to enable
economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner. In 2002, Uganda also
ratified the Kyoto Protocol 1998, a protocol to the UNFCCC.
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) 1994 was
signed by Uganda in 1996 and ratified in 1997. The convention accords the development of National Action Plans a central role in the strategy to combat desertification. The purpose of the National Action Plans is to identify the factors contributing
to desertification and practical measures necessary to combat desertification. Article
8 of the Regional Implementation Annex for Africa urges states to include adjustment of institutional and regulatory framework of natural resource management to
x
Foreword