Revitalizing Beneficial Soil Microbes: Why Indigenous Soil Knowledge and Conservation Practices in Africa Still Relevant to Sustainable Farming?

Abstract

Research Gap: Against the backdrop of a range of documented Western-centric farming practices and approaches that ignored the relevance of Indigenous soil knowledge (IKS) and Conservation agriculture (CA) in revitalizing and preserving beneficial soil microbes, the study aimed to fill a yawning gap on often overlooked continent’s indigenous base farming strategies which are still essential in restoring and enhancing beneficial soil microbial populations. Methodology: The study was conducted in Chimanimani district of Zimbabwe. It adopted a constructivist research design incorporating a qualitative approach. The sample consisted of 45 research respondents. A purposive sampling was used to select key informants such as extension officers, ecologists, Western-trained scientists and traditional leaders. Snowball sampling helped to identify additional participants such as small-scale farmers and community elders with relevant insights. The study used semi-structured interviews, observations, and content analysis to establish socio-environmental implications emanated from declining microbial populations in rural communities. The data collected were coded, analyzed thematically, and discussed in light of relevant literature. Key Findings: The findings revealed that ignoring the significance of ISK and CA in restoring beneficial soil microbes have posed serious socio-environmental implications on humans and soil ecosystems. Most of the challenges emerged, namely water scarcity, climate-induced disasters, degradation, pollution and human-nature conflict continued to destroy soil microbial populations. Thus, the study found that ISK based in conservation practices is still relevant in sustaining African agriculture. However, the study also revealed that Western-centric practices which often overlook the continent’s rich traditions adversely affect sustainability. Implications: The findings implied that a call for conservation-based practices with a more comprehensive understanding of soil health and sustainability in various agricultural contexts becomes urgent. Additionally, the results also implied that by overlooking ISK and CA, African rural communities continued to live on borrowed time, in which their future becomes uncertain and precarious.