Abstract:
There is consensus in the international community that development and poverty
alleviation in rural Africa are among the most urgent global agendas for the 21
st
century.
Many rural Africans have traditionally depended on natural resources. Land use patterns
are highly heterogeneous across diverse agro-ecological/farming systems and even within
the systems, some being more extensive, while others being more intensive. These days a
range of factors, including increasing population pressure and global climate change, has
made it impossible for development through conventional extensive technologies or
degradational pathways to be sustainable as a viable strategy. To achieve both
development and environmental goals, sound agricultural intensification technologies
through more intensive and efficient use of inputs internal to systems, or conservation
pathways, must be identified and tailored to specific local needs and conditions to be
adopted by rural households, while enabling policy and infrastructure should be availed
by government and development agencies.
This chapter investigates the challenges that Africa has faced in rural development
and natural resource management and seeks guidance for policies and research. Firstly,
the chapter gives an overview of the current state of heterogeneous agro-ecological and
farming systems and the development challenges posed by population growth and climate
