The earth beneath our feet, often dusty, overlooked, trodden upon, is one of humanity’s oldest allies. From the golden cereal grains that cradle life in our bellies to the potatoes, cassava, maize, yams, vegetables and fruits that nourish our families, virtually everything we eat is born from the soil. Soil is where life begins: a living, breathing matrix of minerals, organic matter, water, air, and billions upon billions of invisible organisms working in quiet harmony to sustain plants, and by extension, people. Without healthy soil, our fields go barren, our food supply falters, and the connection between land and livelihood frays.
This humility of soil, humble beneath our feet yet mighty in what it provides, is why every 5th December the world pauses to observe World Soil Day (WSD), a global call to remember that soil is not dirt, it is life. This year, 2025, the theme is “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities,” a powerful reminder that even in the heart of concrete jungles, the soil beneath still matters.
According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), over 95 percent of the food we consume originates from soils, and soils provide 15 out of the 18 naturally occurring chemical elements essential to plant growth.
But soils are not just the cradle of agriculture. They are a key component of ecosystem health, water regulation, carbon storage, biodiversity maintenance, and climate resilience. When soils are well-managed, that is, rich in organic matter, biologically active, they foster fertile fields, help water infiltrate and recharge groundwater, mitigating climate change.
Yet globally, and in Nigeria, soils are under siege. Unsustainable farming, deforestation, urban sprawl, poor waste and drainage management, and climate change are degrading soils through erosion, loss of fertility, acidification, and compaction. Degradation does not only threaten food security; it threatens the very foundation of human existence.
According to recent reports, approximately one-third of Nigeria’s agricultural soils, about 33 percent, are already degraded. Research previously documented that, in the 1990s and early 2000s, Nigeria was losing the equivalent of 100 kg of fertilizer per hectare per year due to erosion and nutrient leaching, far above what soils could naturally replenish. A report according to Punch Editorial Board, 2012, said that Nigeria experienced flooding like never before. Flood washed away farmlands in 20 states out of the 36 states plus the FCT. Nasarawa lost over 2,000 hectares of farmland to flood.
In parts of southeastern Nigeria, entire villages, farms, roads and schools have been swallowed by expanding gullies. Coastal erosion along Nigeria’s long shoreline, especially in the Niger Delta region, also threatens land and property.
Beyond the countryside, urban areas are not spared. Rapid urbanization in cities like Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Onitsha is transforming landscapes at a dizzying pace. Natural soil surfaces are being lost under concrete, asphalt, and impermeable materials; green cover is shrinking; drainage systems are poor; waste mismanagement worsens flooding. The result is that cities are more vulnerable to floods, heat stress, and even loss of groundwater recharge, all because the soil’s natural functions are being erased.
The 2025 theme “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities” is especially timely for Nigeria, where urbanization, population growth, and climate impacts converge to place enormous pressure on land and soil. Experts argue that just as we invest in roads, buildings, drainage, we must invest in soil health as foundational infrastructure for sustainable cities.
Nigeria’s federal government appears to be heeding that call. At a recent WSD event held in Abuja, Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, minister of state for Agriculture and Food Security, described soil health as the frontline of food survival. “Soil produces 95 percent of the food Nigerians consume, while 33 percent of national soils are already degraded. Restoring just 2 to 3 centimeters of soil can take 1000 years” he said.
Under the new national soil health agenda, pilot soil-testing programmes are being rolled out across twelve states, a first step toward more informed land-use and agriculture. “The plan includes 774 soil laboratories nationwide to be operated by youth and women. Equipment is already in place in 12 states across all geopolitical zones.” Aliyu said. The government and partners are expanding sustainable agriculture practices such as crop rotation, agroforestry, reduced tillage, and organic fertilization.
In urban contexts, experts and urban planners, including scientists from the Nigeria Institute of Soil Science (NISS), are advocating for city-wide green belts, permeable surfaces, conservation of urban green spaces, urban farms and gardens, and better waste and water-management systems to preserve soil functions in urban areas.
Institutions such as Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) are marking WSD 2025 with public sensitisation walks to draw attention to risks associated with soil sealing, concrete-laden roads and buildings, and to call for integrating soil science into city planning.
If current trends continue, the consequences for Nigeria could be severe. Degraded soils coupled with diminishing fertility could lead to collapsing food production, a nightmare in a country already wrestling with population growth, urban migration, and climate stress. The loss of topsoil and nutrients undermines farmers’ ability to grow staple crops such as maize, millet, cassava, and vegetables, threatening food security and pushing food prices up.
At this juncture, Nigeria needs both nationwide soil-health policy and grassroots action. Experts have long called for a comprehensive national soil policy; past WSD observances urged such a policy to curb soil erosion, regulate sand mining and construction practices, and promote sustainable land use.
But policy alone will not suffice. On the ground, on farms, in city layouts, in drainage systems, in waste disposal, in urban planning, change must take root. Farmers need support to adopt sustainable agricultural practices: minimal tillage, crop rotation, organic fertilisers, agroforestry, cover cropping.
At community level, awareness is critical: citizens need to understand the role of soil in water regulation, food security, climate resilience, flood mitigation, and urban liveability. WSD-linked events, walks, school campaigns, urban-farm drives, have shown promise in raising consciousness.
On this World Soil Day 2025, the call is not just for fields and farms, but for cities too. Beneath the towering skyscrapers, sidewalks, parking lots, and concrete blocks in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and other Nigerian cities, there lies soil that can, if treated with respect, continue to do what it’s always done: filter rain, regulate temperature, recharge groundwater, harbor biodiversity, absorb carbon, and anchor green life that softens concrete and strengthens communities. Let us remember: the soil beneath our feet is not inert dirt. It is the quiet foundation of our past, the fragile base of our present, and the seedbed of our future. Caring for it is not optional but essential.
