May 2025: New paper explores how desertification emerges and how freehold farmers respond

In Namibia, external shocks such as droughts, market changes, and new regulatory frameworks exacerbate rangeland desertification. The present study, authored by Lena Grieger and other NamTip project members from ISOE and published in the scientific journal Land, combines remote sensing methods with semi-structured interviews and a literature review. The aim was to decipher the underlying processes and to identify associated social and ecological changes. Results reveal that inadequate grass availability, coupled with income deficits, serves as a pivotal catalyst for rangeland desertification. To avoid or mitigate the effects of ecological regime shifts and to help farmers escape desertification, it will be necessary to implement changes through long-term risk mitigation strategies, such as rangeland restoration measures, as well as on- and off-farm income diversification. These strategies will provide a foundation for subsequent research on effective long-term mitigation strategies to prevent further rangeland desertification and to secure the livelihoods of farmers.

The full paper can be found here.