Environmental Degradation in the Horn of Africa: the Case of Northwestern Eritrea

Abstract

The Sawa catchment area in Forto, NW Eritrea is a key natural resource which had traditionally maintained human subsidy with a moderate degree of ecological balance. Recently however, various users with varied production objectives have competed on the meaty part of the Sawa River. New interventions of commercial horticulture of modernized agriculture have threatened the life-line of pastoralists as a result of conflicting practices .This paper attempts to critically assess the impacts of current interventions in Forto and suggests ways and means of improving the deteriorating environment.