Salinization: new perspectives on a major desertification issue

Soil salinization limits the agricultural potential of soils in many environments and has been considered to be a significant component of desertification processes in the worldʹs drylands. Taking the case of Africa in particular the nature of salinization processes and previous estimates of extent are considered. UNEPʹs GLASOD programme and the GRID database are used to reassess the problem. Secondary (human induced) salinization accounts for only 10 percent of Africaʹs saline soils though it does affect half the area of irrigated land. When all African dryland agricultural land is considered nutrient depletion is a far greater constraint on food production.