ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an overview of the issues, with the goal of identifying and contrasting the myths and realities, because some of the former have the potential to confuse issues and negatively impact on policy decisions, actions and approaches required to effectively tackle the problem. An intense debate over the desertification phenomenon has been raging for well over two decades, since the advent of the Sahelian drought in the early 1970s. The process of desertification is not one of advancing deserts but usually starts in small areas or pockets of land where due to a number of factors, the vegetative cover is reduced to the extent of exposing the soil to erosion. The claim that desertification is a southern problem with only on-site and no significant off-site impact needs to be re-examined in the light of evidence of transcontinental dust travel.
