Two Seemingly-Unconnected Events Described the Grotesque Deforestation of East Darfur and How Farmers Were the First to Realize It                

For decades, farmers of East Darfur used to meet their natural obligations behind thick bushes and giant trees of the jungles. The tree and bush cover was so immense that such daily necessities did not trouble anyone to build a toilet.

At the time (around 2003 and before), even the roads and pathways were limited. Rabbits, for their part, were blessedly living in peace and joyful serenity; never bothered. In fact, many other species that inhabited the region were enjoying this peace. Things were going this way for many years… until recently.

In 2020, a startling transformation occurred. For the first time in their life, farmers of East Darfur realized that meeting their daily necessities is no longer viable, neither behind bushes nor among jungles. Surprisingly, it appeared that there were neither thick trees nor a trace of bush, and now each one of them had to construct a fully functioning toilet. All these forests that surrounded their farms were no longer visible, and the land was as bare as a North African desert, only with crops covering it.

Alsadig, a farmer himself in the region, once blithely told me that one day a fellow farmer found a rabbit and chased it. The poor rabbit, instead of finding refuge in the nearest bush, found itself running as fast as it could from one farm to another, only to find another farmer coming its way. Eventually exhausted, the rabbit just surrendered in the middle of one farm, unwillingly presenting itself as a meal for a hungry farmer. The rabbit story was narrated by the farmer as a funny occurrence, but it suggests something deeper; an imminent menace to wildlife and forestry in the regions of Darfur.

East Darfur was once a rich region. The fauna was diverse, consisting of residing and seasonal birds, numerous mammals, and even a presence of wildlife the more we advance South (a wide part of East Darfur borders the region of Bahr el Ghazal of South Sudan). Ever-expanding farming projects and excessive, unsupervised charcoal cultivation are the primary reasons for the deterioration.

The flora in the region was equally impressive. ‘Travelling was burdensome in the 2000s,’ remarked Omar, a resident in East Darfur and a farmer himself. “Those days, you never would want to travel bare-headed on the back of a pick-up truck, or the trees would seriously threaten your safety. Nowadays you can travel on the back of a fully-loaded Hino truck and not be touched by a tree branch.”

Forest cover decline in East Darfur

According to Global Forest Watch, there is an alarming decline in tree cover in East Darfur. Based on their 2021 estimates, there is an 87% decrease in tree cover. Not only that, but this percentage is met by 0% reforestation; which suggests that the loss would be permanent, and unless decisive action is taken, deforestation would become the default.

In addition to the aforementioned reasons, part of this environmental degradation could be attributed to climate change, which is already marring North Darfur and the bordering parts of the state.

North Darfur’s Drought. Source: Osama Osman, winner of the World Bank’s 2020 Photography Contest

In as much as it destroys plant and animal life, it negatively affects soil fertility; hence threatening to hinder the very quest for which farmers diligently work towards. Over-cultivation, as has been scientifically proven, severely affects soil fertility. Farmers are worried that the annual decline of produce is not only due to varying percentages of rainfall but also because of the deteriorating soil. 

Although the government plays a key role in the way it would be implemented, combating deforestation is a quest that is not easily achievable unless a collective effort is exerted. Civil institutions and NGOs should be encouraged to prioritize the issues of deforestation in their programs. Additionally, regulated charcoal production must be enforced, for now, paving the way for a complete banning of this practice in the future. 

A farmer collecting his watermelon harvests. Source: UN Environment & European Union’s 2015 Joint Initiative of East Darfur Natural Resources Management Project

Fortunately, there are few initiatives from young environmental activists directed towards spreading awareness and exposing the irresponsible practices that affect natural resources. One of these initiatives is the Sudanese Environment Conservation Society — a platform of activists that aims to monitor natural resources and expose violations such as charcoal cultivation and ivory poaching. Similarly, diligent activists have been working for years in the Sudan Youth Organization On Climate Change towards “preservation of human resources, and protecting the environment through developing the capacities of society, especially youth and women.”

Local farmers play a key role in this quest, and there are some of them who, by mere experience, know the ins and outs of soil fertility and who would occasionally spread some valuable wisdom regarding the optimum way in which the land should be serviced. Some of their advice includes changing the type of crop from time to time to ‘’heat up the earth’’ as they put it, or not planting anything altogether for a year or two- as if giving the soil a break.

Conclusion

This subtle but floating local wisdom should be avidly collected, documented, and promoted. At the same time, Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA)— a recent invention of techniques and technologies aimed at enhancing agricultural practices in accordance with climate fluctuations could be implemented by agricultural institutions.

The scientific advice of CSA must be passed on to farmers so that they can be able to rectify their farming impact on natural forestation. At its core, CSA aims to improve farming productivity, adaption to climate change, and mitigation of deforestation and soil fertility. Having been successfully implemented in Tanzania and other East African countries, it’s now more than urgent to bring this new farming approach to the Sudanese soil.

If there ever was a reason for why we might not be able to find rabbits in East Darfur in the near future, it would be because they went extinct. Farmers could build as many toilets as they want (and they should) but that is never going to be a panacea for the environmental and economic catastrophes awaiting.