Soil and nutrients loss in Malawi: an economic assessment

Soil loss is a major threat to agricultural development in Malawi, and the size of the agricultural sector in the Malawian economy renders it a major limitation to the overall economic development of the country. Soil loss reduces cultivable soil depth, but also takes away fertile soils from farmlands. The net effect is a loss of agricultural productivity, increased expenditure on fertilizers, and a general decline in profitability of crop production. The aim of the project is to analyse the economic impact of both soil and nutrient loss in Malawi with new country-representative data on soil loss and nutrient indicators collected through field surveys, merged with detailed climatic data and socio-economic information. It translates soil loss/nutrient loss into yield loss and estimates the economic impact of loss on agricultural production as a result of soil degradation and then, it identifies best practices to mitigate the soil loss phenomenon.