Crop Loss Due to Soil Salinity and Agricultural Adaptations to It in the Middle East and North Africa Region

Jeetendra Prakash Aryal (), Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle and Ahmed H. El-Naggar
Additional contact information
Jeetendra Prakash Aryal: Directorate of Programs, International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab Emirates
Luis Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle: Directorate of Programs, International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab Emirates
Ahmed H. El-Naggar: Directorate of Programs, International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dubai P.O. Box 14660, United Arab Emirates

Resources, 2025, vol. 14, issue 9, 1-18

Abstract: Using data collected from 294 farm households across Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, this study quantifies crop losses due to soil salinity and analyzes the key factors associated with it. Further, it analyzes the factors driving the farmers’ choice of adaptation measures against salinity. Almost 54% of households surveyed reported yield losses due to salinity, with a sizable portion experiencing losses above 20%. In response to salinization, farmers adopted five adaptation practices, including crop rotation, salt stress-tolerant varieties, drainage management, soil amendments, and improved irrigation practices. A generalized linear model is applied to examine the factors explaining crop loss due to salinity. Results show that a higher share of irrigated land correlates with greater salinity-related crop loss, particularly in areas with poor drainage and low water quality. Conversely, farms with good soil quality reported significantly lower losses. Crop losses due to salinity were much lower in quinoa compared to wheat. Farmers who received agricultural training or belonged to cooperatives reported lower losses. A multivariate probit model was employed to understand drivers of adaptive behaviors. The analysis shows credit access, cooperative membership, training, and resource endowments as significant predictors of adaptation choices. The results underscore the importance of expanding credit availability, strengthening farmer organizations, and investing in training for effective salinity management.

Keywords: salinity; Egypt; Morocco; Tunisia; adaptation measures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/14/9/139/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/14/9/139/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jresou:v:14:y:2025:i:9:p:139-:d:1738935

Access Statistics for this article

Resources is currently edited by Ms. Donchian Ma

More articles in Resources from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().