By Ammar M. Rajab Professor Nafiu Abdu of the Department of Soil Science, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has called for ...
By Ammar M. Rajab
Professor Nafiu Abdu of the Department of Soil Science, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has called for the repositioning of soil science and sustainable land management at the centre of Nigeria’s national development agenda.
Professor Abdu made the call on Wednesday, 2 September 2026, while delivering his inaugural lecture titled “From Soil Chemistry to Sustainable Land Management: Bridging Environmental Quality, Nutrient Dynamics and Agricultural Resilience in Nigeria” at the Yusufu Bala Usman Hall, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
The lecture, presented as ABU Inaugural Lecture Series No. 06/26, brought together the major themes and findings from Professor Abdu’s academic and research career in soil chemistry, environmental quality, nutrient management, soil contamination, geochemistry and sustainable land use.
Professor Abdu said soil is one of humanity’s most strategic natural resources, noting that it supports food production, regulates water flow, stores carbon, cycles nutrients and sustains biodiversity.
He, however, warned that Nigerian soils are facing serious pressures including nutrient depletion, erosion, salinity, acidification, contamination, urbanisation, mining and climate change. The lecture document states that 43 per cent of Nigeria’s total landmass is degraded, while about 33 per cent of the country’s general soil health faces severe degradation.
According to him, poor nutrient-use efficiency is also a major challenge, with the document citing marginal physical products of about 8 kilogrammes of grain for maize and 9 kilogrammes for rice per kilogramme of applied nitrogen. It further identifies severe phosphorus deficiency, resulting partly from high phosphorus fixation, intensive weathering and continuous cultivation.
Focus On Site-Specific Fertiliser Use
The professor's research demonstrated the importance of understanding the chemistry of tropical soils before applying fertilisers.
His studies found that tropical savanna soils are generally characterised by low organic matter and poor nutrient reserves, while soil acidity, continuous cultivation and variable-charge minerals significantly affect nutrient availability and phosphorus retention.
The findings, he said, reinforce the need for site-specific nutrient management rather than blanket fertiliser recommendations.
His work on phosphorus chemistry particularly examined phosphorus fixation, sorption and desorption, soil mineralogy and the roles of iron and aluminium oxides in determining phosphorus availability.
The research shifted attention from static equilibrium concepts towards dynamic kinetic modelling, with implications for more accurate prediction of fertiliser phosphorus efficiency and improved recommendations for tropical soils.
Raises Concern Over Heavy Metal Contamination
Professor Abdu also highlighted the environmental and public-health implications of heavy metal contamination arising from mining, industrial activities, waste disposal, urban agriculture and agricultural intensification.
His research examined contaminants including lead, cadmium, zinc, copper, chromium, nickel and arsenic, with studies in mining-affected communities in Zamfara State and urban vegetable-production areas in Kano, Bobo-Dioulassou in Burkina Faso and Sikasso in Mali.
He reported that artisanal mining significantly increases heavy metal concentrations, while long-term wastewater irrigation can create health risks for producers and consumers and provide a route through which contaminants enter the food chain.
The lecture consequently called for urgent legislation on the use of untreated wastewater for food production, stressing that long-term contamination threatens food security and ecosystem health.
Professor Abdu further noted that his research established a soil-metal balance and quantified potential human exposure through vegetable consumption, dust inhalation and heavy metal ingestion, providing baseline information for environmental management, food safety and public-health policy.
Advocates Biochar As Low-Cost Soil Solution
Another major area of the research presented was the use of biochar for soil improvement and environmental remediation.
The research found that biochar can reduce nutrient losses, improve soil chemical properties and immobilise heavy metals in contaminated soils, thereby reducing plant uptake and soil contamination.
Professor Abdu's work suggests that biochar could serve as a low-cost, multifunctional soil amendment capable of improving fertility while helping to mitigate environmental pollution.
Promotes Integrated Soil Fertility Management
The inaugural lecturer argued that no single intervention can sustainably resolve soil fertility problems in tropical agriculture.
He therefore advocated Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM), combining mineral fertilisers, organic amendments, crop-residue management, biological inputs, improved agronomic practices and site-specific recommendations.
According to the lecture, combining organic and inorganic nutrient sources improves nutrient efficiency, restoration of soil organic matter supports long-term productivity, farmer participation is important for technology adoption, while fertiliser optimisation can improve economic returns.
The research also produced a fertiliser optimisation tool for Nigerian agroecologies and established method-specific recovery factors for soil organic carbon determination to improve the comparability of results from different analytical procedures.
Turns To Nanotechnology For Sustainable Agriculture
Professor Abdu's lecture also examined the emerging role of nanotechnology and photocatalysis in sustainable agriculture.
His research explored the use of bismuth ferrite (BiFeO₃) and graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) as photocatalysts for sustainable nitrogen fixation, alongside prospects for green ammonia production, solar-driven nitrogen fixation and improved nitrogen-use efficiency.
He described nanotechnology as a complement to conventional soil science, offering tools for improving nutrient-use efficiency, environmental remediation and real-time soil-health monitoring.
Calls For Greater Investment In Soil Science
Looking ahead, Professor Abdu identified inadequate research funding, weak laboratory infrastructure, limited long-term soil monitoring, poor soil-data management, limited farmer access to soil testing, weak links between research and policy, declining soil fertility, environmental contamination and climate-change pressures among the challenges facing soil science in Nigeria.
He proposed greater investment in digital soil mapping, precision nutrient management, climate-smart soil management, soil-health monitoring and research into emerging contaminants such as microplastics, pharmaceutical residues, electronic waste and industrial pollutants.
He also advocated converting agricultural waste into biochar, compost and other value-added soil amendments, while making phosphorus recovery and recycling a national priority.
“Soil Must Move To The Centre Of National Development”
Professor Abdu maintained that soil science must move from the background to the centre of Nigeria's national development planning.
He said sustainable soil management is fundamental to achieving food security, environmental sustainability, climate resilience, agricultural transformation and sustainable industrialisation.
He therefore called for strategic investment in soil research, laboratories, soil information systems, extension services, soil conservation programmes and human-capacity development.
Concluding the lecture, Professor Abdu said the future of food security, environmental sustainability and climate resilience in Africa would depend substantially on how effectively soils are managed.
His central message was that healthy soils are indispensable to sustainable societies because the interaction between soil minerals, nutrients, contaminants, microorganisms, water and plants affects agricultural productivity, environmental stability, ecosystem health and human wellbeing.
The inaugural lecture therefore presented soil management not merely as an agricultural concern, but as a critical component of Nigeria's food security, environmental protection, climate resilience and national development agenda.
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