Agriculture-Livestock-Forestry Nexus: Pathways to Enhanced Incomes, Soil Health, Food Security and Climate Change Mitigation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Summary

This paper reviews the nexus between crop agriculture, livestock, and forestry systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, assessing integrated approaches as pathways to improved smallholder livelihoods, soil health, and food security whilst contributing to climate change mitigation. The authors likely draw on existing empirical literature to evaluate the multi-functional benefits of agroforestry and mixed farming systems, identifying enabling conditions and constraints for adoption at scale. The work contributes to the evidence base for integrated natural resource management policies in low-income agricultural contexts.

UK applicability

The findings are directly focused on Sub-Saharan African smallholder contexts and are unlikely to be directly transferable to UK conditions; however, the principles around integrated crop-livestock-agroforestry systems and soil health co-benefits may offer relevant insights for UK agroforestry policy development and mixed farming diversification strategies.

Key measures

Household income indicators; soil health metrics (organic matter, nutrient availability, erosion rates); food security measures (dietary diversity, caloric availability); carbon sequestration estimates; greenhouse gas emissions

Outcomes reported

The study likely examines how integrated agriculture-livestock-forestry systems affect smallholder incomes, soil health indicators, food security outcomes, and greenhouse gas mitigation potential across Sub-Saharan African contexts. It probably synthesises evidence on the co-benefits and trade-offs of integrated land-use approaches relative to conventional monoculture or siloed production systems.

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