Sustainable Agriculture in Third World Countries

According to current estimations, 690 million people, or 8.9 percent of the world population, are hungry. This number went up by 10 million in just one year and will go up by about 60 million in the next 5 years. Additionally, 135 million suffer from acute hunger, a result of man-made conflicts, climate change, and economic struggles. Nearly a quarter of a billion people are at the brink of starvation; something must be done to provide food and relief to the peoples of the regions most struggling. There needs to be significant reform of the global food and agriculture system in order to feed the 690 million people who are hungry today, in addition to the 2 billion people who will be hungry by. It is imperative that agricultural productivity and sustainable food production are improved. One way to alleviate hunger in the world is to improve agriculture. An important aspect of agriculture is soil fertility; soil fertility in areas such as Africa is an issue that needs much attention. According to a study by Andre Bationo, “African soils have an inherently poor fertility because they are very old and lack volcanic rejuvenation.” In addition to that, “inappropriate land use, poor management, and lack of input have led to a decline in productivity, soil erosion, salinization, and loss of vegetation.” African soil is not at all in good shape; the climate and human interaction with the soil have rendered it unusable for agricultural use. The most promising, however, seems to be fertilizers, which would significantly increase crop yield even in places where the soil is not the most fertile. A breakthrough like this would help to alleviate food insecurity significantly