Soils and Food Security in the Arab World

The area of the Arab region is about 14 million Km2 (1.4 * 109 ha) of which about 90% lies in the arid and semi-arid harsh environments and fragile ecosystems. During the past three decades, limited efforts were put to combat soil degradation, and desertification and soil salinization are still the major environmental problems in the Arab region. The annual rapid increase in the population, in addition to the change in life style and the increase in food consumption, led to the widening of the void between production and consumption of food in the region.