Examining the drivers of environmental degradation in Somalia: the role of agriculture, economic and population growth

Abstract

This study tries to provide a comprehensive analysis of the long-run relationships between environmental degradation
and major economic and demographic variables such as GDP, GCF, agricultural land, and population growth. Initially, we
conducted Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) and Phillips-Perron unit root tests to assess the stationarity of the variables.
Since some of the variables are integrated in mixed, it became important to guarantee that the ARDL model provided
robust long-run estimations by cautiously controlling the stationarity issue. The findings indicate that both GDP growth
and population increase are linked to greater environmental degradation. On the other hand, investments in infrastruc
ture and the expansion of agricultural land appear to help reduce some of these adverse effects. In particular, while
economic growth and population pressures significantly contribute to environmental challenges, strategic investments
in infrastructure and sustainable agriculture show promise in mitigating these impacts.

Keywords Environmental degradation · Economic growth · ARDL · Somalia · Deforestation · Sustainable agriculture.