Assessment of lands for cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz; Euphorbiaceae, Magnoliopsida) cultivation using the AHP-GISRemote Sensing technique

The objective of present study was to assess the physical land capacity for an annual cassava crop, aiming to understanding spatial parameters and environment parameters required for locating potential areas of cassava cultivation. According to FAO guidelines, a spatial model was built to assess the potential land for facilitating sustainable cassava production through the integration of the AHP-GIS-Remote Sensing method. The present study showed that the land analysis indicatedthat the high potential land was 6101.1 ha (8% total area), concentrated in the middle and eastern part of the study area. These areas face limitations for the cultivation of cassava due to climatic conditions of the minimum temperature of the coldest month (P3 < 14°C), average annual sunny hours (P5 < 1500 h) and potential factors for providing quality products (LULC, annual precipitation and soil pH are the most significant factors). The areas of cassava crop cultivation were simultaneously reduced. Still, the reason for that has been not dependent on the physical environmental conditions, the limiting factors from the domestic market, backward processing technology, and the purchase price of raw cassava may possibly play a prominent role in the local farms.