Economic benefits of integrated soil fertility management (ISFM)

This section provides the context and relevance of the 'Handbook for Integrated Soil Fertility Management', and explains the need to move from 'silver bullet' to 'best-fit' solutions built on the principles of integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) for farming systems development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It is clear that 'one-size-fits-all' or 'silver bullet' solutions that can be applied across large regions do not exist for SSA. Instead, technologies need to be targeted to farming systems and farms while recognizing their agroecological and socioeconomic environments - to different 'socio-ecological niches'. So instead of talking about baskets of 'best-bet' technologies, this section refers to locally adapted ISFM technologies as 'best-fit' options.

This section is a primer for those involved in promoting integrated soil fertility management but who have little basic knowledge of soils and soil fertility. The aim is to provide information on the principles that underpin the practices contained in ISFM. The paper states that soil comprises mineral and organic constituents combined by biological activity by soil micro- and macroflora and fauna to produce the medium for crop growth. Some attributes, like soil texture, are more or less fixed while other attributes like the soil's capacity to store and release nutrients are strongly influenced by the farmer's management practices. All crops require an adequate supply of mineral nutrients, whether supplied by the soil's store of nutrients or through supplements supplied in the form of organic inputs and mineral fertilizers.