Land and water management for sustainable agricultural production.

Abstract

The constraints on land use and water resources for sustainable agricultural production in Kenya were assessed during May to September 1992 using questionnaires and personal interviews along with existing secondary data using districts representative of the country as a whole. It is concluded that land use planning in Kenya is disastrous. A large proportion of good land is under commercial crops that are less important than food crops, from social and political standpoints. Soil degradative processes, other than accelerated erosion, should be given due attention. Erosion control measures should be evaluated for technical feasibility, economic benefit, social acceptability and environmental suitability. Soil erosion classification is required. Drainage and irrigation potentials are under-exploited, whilst fertilizer use on food crops is minimal. Due to maldistribution and mismanagement of land and water resources, low crop production per unit of land is common. It is recommended that techniques be developed to ensure sustained high productivity of land to satisfy changing needs without unnecessary opening up of new land.