Soil degradation and nutrient depletion have become serious threats to
agricultural productivity in Africa. Soils cannot supply the quantities of
nutrients required and yield levels decline rapidly once cropping commences.
This book addresses these issues and includes papers from an international
symposium held at Cotonou, Benin, October 9-12, 2000, organized by the
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria and the
Department of Land Management of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. In
five main parts, it marks the end of a first phase of collaborative research on
"Balanced Nutrient Management Systems for the Moist Savanna and Humid Forest
Zones of Africa" and concludes with recommendations, providing essential reading
for