article · Heliyon
Desertification presents a major threat to environmental stability and livelihoods across frontline states in northern Nigeria. An assessment spanning from 2003 to 2020 evaluated vulnerability to land degradation by tracking environmental indicators, including vegetation cover, surface temperature, and surface reflectance. The findings reveal that only 6.7 percent of the examined area remains unaffected by desertification. In contrast, 60 percent of the land falls into severe or compelling vulnerability categories, with the remaining land experiencing light to moderate exposure. The steady loss of vegetation cover and diminishing water resources increasingly threaten regional agriculture, food security, and community stability through displacement and livelihood loss. Proposed responses focus on revising and enforcing land use regulations, advancing sustainable farming methods, and creating monitoring systems to inform regional mitigation strategies.
Widespread land degradation threatens the primary livelihoods and food supplies of communities across northern Nigeria. By quantifying how much land is severely vulnerable, this assessment highlights the critical scale of environmental decline. It provides clear evidence needed to support environmental planning, resource protection, and community resilience programmes against escalating aridity and climate risks.
The assessment framework could inform environmental monitoring systems, spatial planning tools, and resource management platforms used by government agencies, agricultural planners, and development organisations. While the work demonstrates applied analysis using remote sensing parameters between 2003 and 2020, it remains early-stage research rather than a packaged commercial product, requiring integration into operational decision-support software before direct adoption.
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Desertification constitutes a grave threat to the environmental and socio-economic stability of desertification frontline states in Northern Nigeria. From 2003 to 2020, this research comprehensively analyzes desertification vulnerability, integrating parameters such as NDVI, LST, TVDI, MSAVI, and Albedo. Key factors contributing to land degradation are identified, along with the spatial patterns and trends of desertification over the two-decade period. The consequences are profound, with Northern Nigeria's ecosystem experiencing a steady decline in vegetation cover. Agriculture, vital to the region's economy, faces increased aridity and reduced arable land, jeopardizing food security. Diminishing water resources exacerbates scarcity issues, placing additional strain on communities. These environmental changes lead to severe socio-economic implications, including displacement, loss of livelihoods, and heightened vulnerability to climate-related risks. Urgent, comprehensive, and strategic interventions are imperative. Policy recommendations underscore revising and enforcing land use regulations, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, and establishing monitoring systems to guide decision-making. This research contributes practical strategies to enhance the resilience of desertification frontline states, safeguard livelihoods, and align with Nigeria's sustainable development objectives. Findings from the study indicate that only a tiny percentage (6.7 %) of the study area remains unaffected by desertification. Moreover, 13.3 % exhibit light vulnerability, 20 % demonstrate moderate exposure, and 60 % fall into the severe (26.7 %) and compelling (33.3 %) vulnerability categories. These statistics underscore the gravity of desertification in the study area, emphasizing the urgent need for effective mitigation measures to address its impact comprehensively.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e31167
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