Doctor of Philosophy In Dryland Resource Management

In this millennium, drylands all over the world are faced with problems that present tough management, research and policy challenges. These areas cover about 40% of the earth land surface and are home to more than 38%of the world's population. People living in drylands constitute a large fraction of the worlds poorest. Of the worlds most disadvantaged countries, according to United Nation Development Programmes Human Development Index, over 50% are in dryland Africa. In Africa, two-thirds of which is desert or drylands, 73% of the agricultural drylands are moderate to severely degraded. With a rate of disappearance of forest cover of 3.7 to 5 million ha per year bearing down on both surface and groundwater resources and with half the continents farmland suffering from soil degradation and erosion, Africa is under the greatest desertification threat. Despite these, drylands make a significant contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of many nations in the developing world, particularly in terms of livestock products and food grains, and from tourism and related activities. In Kenya, drylands occupy over 80% of the country, where about 36% of the human population is found and 50% of the national livestock herd is also found. In Ethiopia, the livestock sector contributes 16% to GDP, one-third of agricultural GDP, and 8% of export earnings.

The sustainable development of drylands and improvement of livelihoods in the drylands characterized by intense poverty is a priority development agenda in eastern and southern Africa. This will involve interventions targeting, inter alia, increased production and livelihoods systems productivity, and water management options. As elsewhere in the world, the long-term driving force of modern economic growth will be science-based technological advances. The challenges associated with the drylands of eastern and southern Africa require an approach to science and innovation which is entrepreneurial and oriented toward key development challenges.

Advances in various aspects of dryland science and community development practices in recent years suggest a common framework for managing drylands. This framework, the Dryland Development Paradigm, centres on the livelihoods of humans in drylands and their dependence on these ecosystems, through the study of highly interactive human-environment systems. The dryland paradigm responds to recent research and policy trends that link ecosystem management with human livelihoods. It is a convergence of insights and key advances drawn from a diverse array of research in desertification, vulnerability, poverty alleviation, and community development. Key lessons under the dryland development paradigm include one, that ecological and social issues are interwoven, as well as the options for livelihood support and ecological management. Two, that drylands are not at equilibrium, but have multiple thresholds, and thus often exhibit multiple ecological and social states, and three, the practice of indigenous/local environmental knowledge is central to the management of most drylands but is often ignored or undervalued.

Universities have a key role in this new paradigm which will need them to be proactive within national innovation systems to generate relevant and timely interventions for improving livelihoods. Thus this doctorate programme will contribute to the goal of improving the livelihoods of communities in drylands through sustainable resource management supported by focused research, graduate training and community-based interventions.

The specific objectives of the programme are:-

1. To develop a cadre of high-level dryland specialists in academia, research and policy.

2. To enhance the productivity of natural resources through improved management based on a sound understanding of dryland system interactions and dynamics.

3. To develop site-specific guidelines and information tools on suitable dryland resource use and management techniques for use by communities, extension agents and development specialists.

4. To formulate recommendations for supporting policy decisions and promoting investments in agricultural innovation in Africa's drylands.

Key outputs and outcomes expected from the programme include the following:-

1. The programme will produce specialists with a sound background who are specialized and competent in articulating cross-cutting issues and equipped with the relevant tools for the development and utilization of drylands to produce goods and services needed by society.

2. The programme strengthens linkages and partnerships among universities in the region, and between universities and national, regional and international institutions with mandates in dryland research and capacity development.

3. By bringing together experts with diverse backgrounds and experiences, the programme brings into sharp focus and addresses critical regional training and research gaps.

4. The programme will contribute to the cutting edge knowledge relevant for the management of the vast drylands in the region and beyond.

ADR 701: Dryland Ecology

Determinants of dryland ecosystems: climate, water, soil, human and animal activities, variability and unpredictability, seasonality, disequilibrium vs. equilibrium concepts, fragility vs. resilience, Quantitative and dynamic ecology, energy flow in ecosystems, biogeochemical cycles, advanced animal and plant population biology, plan-soil-water relations, water stress physiology, ordination methods, species-area relationships, nature and properties of vegetation data, field inventory methods, spatial analysis, landscape analysis, Land degradation and ecological resilience; Restoration of degraded drylands; Landcover and land-use changes, habitat structure and ecological stability, behavioural ecology, ecology and conservation; Climate and adaptation to emerging climate-induced scenarios: meteorological, ecological and social basis for climate change; patterns of adaptation to climate change at ecological and sociological levels; technologies and methodologies to mitigate impacts of climate change.

ADR 702: Remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems

Principles of remote sensing, visual image interpretation; elements of image interpretation, image interpretation strategies, digital image processing; image enhancement and correction techniques; image classification; general sensor technology; principles of GIS; data input systems; data management procedures; spatial data output/display; spatial queries and simple analysis; attribute data analysis and special application areas; remote sensing and GIS applications in global climate change, applications in agriculture: Land use/land cover mapping, soil mapping, forestry, rangeland, water resource applications