The role of agricultural resource base inventories in national and regional planning

Developing a regional inventory involves collecting, cataloguing, and presenting information about national agricultural resources, using a standardised approach to data gathering, classification, and presentation. The agricultural resource base is the physical characteristics of the land, one of the basic factors of agricultural production. However, land consists of several elements such as the soil, climate, land-form, and vegetation. In addition, it includes several factors used to modify the naturally occurring conditions, such as water for irrigation or fertilizers to improve soil fertility. An agricultural resource base inventory includes information on several of these important aspects of the natural environment.

A position paper on agricultural development policy in the SADCC region in order to enhance regional food security.