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Technical Support for the Establishment of the Lesotho Soils Information System (LESIS) - TCP/LES/3602

Year of publication 2020

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 10

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Project

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) Lesotho is a landlocked country completely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa More than 76 percent of the country’s population lives in rural areas, where the main source of income is subsistence rain fed agriculture Land use patterns in Lesotho have been mainly determined by historical circumstances and agro ecological conditions In the past, hilltops and mountain sides were used as fortresses and many settlements were confined to these strategic locations, while flat plains and fertile valleys were used for crop farming and remote mountains for grazing This has largely remained the pattern of land use in the country although population pressure and urbanization have forced widespread encroachment of settlements in areas traditionally reserved for agriculture The shortage of arable agricultural land has also tended to concentrate cultivation on mountain slopes, with devastating results for slope and soil stability, a decrease in the quality of rangelands and reduced agricultural productivity The country’s soils are thus under severe pressure as a result of natural conditions and human activities, triggering soil erosion, land degradation and depletion of soil organic matter Soil data in Lesotho are limited and the lack of systematic and organized soil information impedes the management and monitoring of soil properties.

Language English

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    Agriculture is the primary source of income and employment in Lesotho, with 65 8 percent of the population living in rural regions as of 2016 However, in favorable crop years Lesotho can only meet 30 percent of its annual cereal requirement and recently its agricultural production has declined further Floods, droughts, frost, fluctuating meteorological conditions, and a shortened growing season all contribute to lower agricultural output and yields Soil erosion as well as falling agricultural investments aggravate this challenging situation As a result, the country highly relies on importation to meet the food needs of its population The poor and most vulnerable households are significantly impacted by the declining agricultural productivity with their ability to recover from climate related shocks also diminishing These deplorable conditions were outlined when the country experienced one of the worst droughts in its history, affecting approximately 680 000 people in 2015 and 2016 Today, an estimated 57 percent of the population lives in poverty, earning less than USD 1 a day Lesotho also has a high malnutrition rate, with 33 percent of children under the age of five being stunted.
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    Sudanese Soil Information System and Digital Soil Mapping - TCP/SUD/3601 2020
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    Although knowledge on soils in Sudan was plentiful, it needed to be harmonized and made accessible to a broadrange of users and stakeholders. The country had nonational soil information system that could describethe status and potential of agricultural soils, as well as individual soil properties that are essential for mapping agricultural areas for investment potential and environmental management in general. This lack of readily available information affected both research and development activities, and policy and strategy-making atnational, subnational and local levels. Top medium-termpriorities such as crop intensification and high productivity can only be achieved through the sustainable management of land resources, which depends on theavailability of soil information. Dealing with increasing levels of land degradation, exacerbated by the expectation of climate change, also required a knowledge of soil resources in order to formulate mitigation plans to ensure better food security in the future. In responseto this, the project focused on the recovery and collection of soil legacy data, the development of a national soi ldatabase for the storage and harmonization of these data, and capacity development on digital soil mapping.
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