Agricultural Practices and Environmental Degradation in Santa Sub-division, North West Region of Cameroon

Abstract

Agriculture is the mainstay of Cameroon’s economy, engaging an estimated 70 percent of the economically active population and accounting for an estimated 80 percent of the primary sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP. It also provides 1/3 of foreign exchange earnings and 15 percent of the country’s budgetary resources. This study set out to investigate agricultural practices and environmental degradation in Santa Sub-division, North West Region of Cameroon. The major types of agricultural practices studied were food crop, market gardening and animal farming. The study made use of primary and secondary data sources. Primary data sources included field observation, interviews and questionnaires. A total of 170 questionnaires were administered using stratified random sampling technique and the data obtained was complemented by secondary sources from published and unpublished materials. Findings revealed that agricultural practices have precarious impacts on the environment in Santa. Climate change was seen to have a silver lining in the crop sector. Declining soil fertility and climate change were some of the major problems faced by farmers in Santa. Adaptation measures amongst others were mixed crop farming, crop rotation, soil management practices and mulching. The study recommended the need to determine the carrying capacity of various grazing, range lands and regulatory control of herd size. This study also proposes the adoption of climate-smart agriculture to minimize the effects of climate change on agriculture in Santa. Farmers in Santa should strengthen their economic security by adopting sustainable agricultural systems, and targeting their production to take advantage of new demands and consumption patterns.