ABSTRACT
Efforts to reverse land degradation have a long history. There is no dearth of mitigating technologies, but economic analyses have indicated that while society may gain from a reduction of negative externalities, farmers have not benefited. Many projects and programmes attempt to bridge the gap between private and society’s interests by offering direct incentives to those willing to use their land according to agreed conservation principles. However, recent evidence suggests that the impact of direct incentives, and particularly subsidies, is limited. Such incentives are generally inadequate to induce lasting change.
The objective of this paper is to provide a broad perspective of incentives and their role in soil conservation. Discussing the limitations of direct incentives, the paper emphasizes that there are many other types of incentives, as well as disincentives, which determine the behavioural pattern of land users. Most are not widely known or even recognized as incentives. The discussion concludes that as long as the framework of economic and institutional conditions is not conducive to conservation, direct incentives will remain ineffective in promoting innovative technologies, and land degradation will continue apace.
