Crop diversification with dye crops for sustainability of drylands

Abstract

Dryland regions are characterised by fragile ecosystems that tend to exacerbate the challenges of sustainable agriculture. Not only is dryland agriculture a dominant economic sector, with significant contribution to GDP (gross domestic product), it is also the primary source of employment and an essential element of livelihoods. International trade in dryland products also represents a major source of export earnings including for less advanced developing countries such as Mali or Burkina Faso, and as such, a potential engine for economic growth and poverty alleviation. It is critical to address land degradation and ensure that agriculture can be undertaken in ways that minimise adverse impacts on fragile ecosystems; a holistic approach to sustainable development in the context of drylands requires a broader understanding of the socio-economic importance of agriculture in these regions. This paper aims to broaden the analytical context surrounding the links between agriculture and sustainable development in drylands by exploring the implications of agriculture production and trade for rural development, livelihoods and food security so as to capture the many parameters that need to be taken into account in the discussion on sustainable land management (SLM). Indeed, advancing the objectives of sustainable land management would require sustaining ecosystems and ecosystem services in drylands and even reversing the trend of degradation. At the same time, it would require ensuring that livelihoods that depend upon agriculture are also sustained and improved, including through improvements in productivity of traditional crops such as maize, sorghum, millet, groundnuts and cotton, that represent primary sources of food intake, employment, income generation and export earnings. Such an approach to agriculture and sustainable land management centred around securing livelihoods could form a basis for the development of emerging markets for medicinal plants, gum arabic and other crops that could contribute to diversification and expansion of economic