Tropical Forest Landscape Change and the Role of Agroforestry Systems in Southern Nigeria

Abstract

The paper analyzes tropical forest landscape change and deforestation trends in Nigeria. Emphasis’ are on the issues, the environmental analysis of the trends, factors influencing it, and community agroforestry efforts. The time frame and setting for the study runs through the west African nation of Nigeria during the periods of 1976 through 2005 at the national and state levels. In fact, Nigeria was once covered by widespread vegetation comprising of humid tropical forests in the south and savannah grasslands in the north rich in biodiversity. A great percentage of this luxurious vegetation has been cleared by the pressures mounted by human activities with eventual degradation. In terms of methods, the paper uses mixscale approach based on descriptive statistics, temporal spatial analysis and mapping, and photographic images to analyze the trends associated with tropical deforestation. The results show visible changes in the form of large scale decline of Nigeria’s forest landscape over the years. This resulted in the disappearance of forest resources and vegetation cover with mounting threats to sensitive natural areas. Aside from the socio-economic elements linked with the problem, community efforts at the margin using agroforestry systems showed some promise with many benefits to stem the tide of deforestation. To remedy the problems, the paper offered some recommendations ranging from policy overhaul to education.