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The purpose of this paper is to determine the extent to which an afforestation programme as spelt out in the Forestry II programme has checked the encroachment of desert in the arid and semi‐arid zone of northern Nigeria.

The study is carried out in the afforestation project states aimed at evaluating the success/failure of the program. Field observation and a site visit are conducted on some communities as well as policies relevant to forestry sector are reviewed.

The preliminary findings of this paper indicate that the afforestation projects had a positive impact on both biophysical and socioeconomic environment and contributed to the sustainability of the afforestation programme.

This paper is primarily focused on the various components of the Forestry II programme and the extent they have helped in combating desertification.

The paper addresses the need for sustainable afforestation projects and discusses on how the community effort and participation of women plays an important role during the afforestation programs.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the sustainability of a forestry management strategy in checkmating desert encroachment and it also examines the impacts of the Forestry II program on agricultural productivity in the rural communities.

The study adopted a quantitative approach in assessing the rural farmers’ level of participation in the Forestry II program in which 201 respondents were interviewed in the study area. Structured questionnaires’ were also administered to afforestation officials/extension workers in the two states regarding the different components of the projects and probable cause(s) of failures/successes as well as the level of involvement of the community in the project. Field observations of the project sites were also carried out with a view to examining the level of achievements on the physical components of the projects.

The findings of this study revealed that, involvement of the stakeholders and participation of the community was lacking at the early stage of the program and the negligence of indigenous knowledge as well as the influence of bottom up approach was not incorporated in the project. The study further revealed that, appreciable positive impacts have been recorded at various levels of its implementation. The improvement of livelihood of the rural people through increased forest products supply was noted, fuel-wood and poles supply were also increased and this had gone a long way in creating employment for the rural dwellers.

The study involved the establishment of shelterbelts, windbreaks, woodlots, orchards and nurseries which were complimented by social forestry, and which raised public awareness through campaigns such as school forestry programs, forestry extension services and a fuel-wood conservation program.

The study articulated success and failure as well as a detailed assessment of the Forestry II project. The study showed that government could significantly combat desertification in the arid zones through sustainable afforestation if adequate resources were employed.

This paper seeks to review the state of desertification in Nigeria, historical trends and past national efforts as well as ongoing programs for combating the fast-spreading desert conditions in the arid zones of the country.

The approach has been carried out through a comprehensive review analysis and detailed assessment on several methods of approach which includes archival materials as well as published government documents, field observation and learned background information of the working and funding dynamics of the program to combat desertification.

The findings of this paper reveal that the failure of the past government effort in combating desertification in Nigeria is a result of the policies and the programs not having been designed to adequately tackle the problem of drought and desertification and of the phenomena being treated as sectoral issues rather than an integrated whole.

This paper has practical implication for anyone interested in sustainable management of drought and desertification in the arid and semi arid zones of the world.

The paper has articulated success and failure of the government programs in combating the twin environmental problems of drought and desertification in Nigeria and also shows that government could significantly combat desertification through sustainable management of its projects/programs if adequate resources are employed.