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In Africa, yield reduction is 2–40%, with an average loss of 8.2% of the continent. [8] Natural disasters: natural disasters such as mud flows, floods are responsible for the death of many living beings each year. This causes a cycle as floods can degrade soil, and soil degradation can cause floods.
Desertification in Africa is a form of land degradation that involves the conversion of productive land into desert or arid areas. This issue is a pressing environmental concern that poses a significant threat to the livelihoods of millions of people in Africa who depend on the land for subsistence .
Much of the soil has rocks or clay from volcanic activity. Other causes include erosion, desertification, and deforestation. Another source of soil degradation is the improper management of waste, lack of facilities and techniques to handle waste lead to the dumping of waste in soil, therefore causes soil degradation by process such as leaching.
Experts say soil acidity causes land degradation by decreasing the availability of plant and essential nutrients, making soil more vulnerable to structure decline and erosion.
Desertification is a gradual process of increased soil aridity.Desertification has been defined in the text of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) as "land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid regions resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities."
Animals graze excessively on this terrain, which degrades the soil, causes vegetation to disappear, and creates other environmental problems. [26] Overgrazing has grown to be a significant issue in Ghana, especially in the northern areas where pastoralist people have historically relied on grazing as a source of income. [ 27 ]
Overgrazing typically increases soil erosion. [7] With continued overutilization of land for grazing, there is an increase in degradation. This leads to poor soil conditions that only xeric and early successional species can tolerate. [8]
Demand for fuel destroys forests in most urban and rural areas globally, and Zimbabwe is not an exception. Loss of trees leads to environmental degradation and increased erosion. Where dried dung is used instead of firewood, soil fertility is lost and harvests are reduced. [15] Without plant cover, erosion can occur and sweep the land into rivers.