Geomatics for forest protection, improved agricultural production and hunger/malnutrition reduction among farm-families in South, South Nigeria

This study examined spatial tools for forest protection, agricultural production and hunger/malnutrition reduction in South-South Nigeria. A total of 450 farmers were interviewed with questionnaires and oral discussions. Data collected were analyzed descriptively. Results showed that the geomatics tools for improvement include Geographic Information System (GIS) (91.1%), remote sensing (94.4%), global positioning system (GPS) (97.4%) and others. The agricultural production challenges faced include the use of geomatics tools such as poor knowledge of soil conditions (M= 2.50), unreliable rainfall (M= 2.74), pest/disease outbreak (M= 2.61), land degradation/declining soil productivity (M= 3.81) among others. Geomatics reduces hunger and malnutrition and improves agriculture by production of land suitability maps (M= 3.41), identification of appropriate fertilizers to apply (M= 3.25), identification of drought-prone areas (M = 3.25), provision of weather forecasts (M= 2.91), detection of pests/diseases (M = 2.30) among other roles. It supports forest protection by forest mapping (M = 3.50), monitoring deforestation (M= 3.45), detection of fire outbreaks (M = 3.05), biodiversity conservation (M= 2.84), illegal logging and law enforcement (M= 3.10), and urban encroachment on forest areas (M= 3.45) among other roles. The challenges faced include limited awareness and capacity building (84.4%), weak extension services (87.5%), high cost of technology (91.1%), inadequate infrastructure (94.4%) among others. To address the challenges, the following measures are suggested: use of GIS for site-specific management (87.5%), farm-level decision support systems (94.4%), encourage early warning systems and capacity building/awareness programmes (95.5%).