How accurate are existing land cover maps for agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa?

TL;DR

This study evaluates the accuracy of 11 publicly available land cover maps for cropland identification in Sub-Saharan Africa, aiming to guide users in selecting suitable maps for agriculture monitoring and highlight areas for improvement.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive quantitative comparison of existing land cover maps for African cropland detection using rigorous reference data, informing future map development.

Findings

Significant variation in map accuracy across regions.

Some maps outperform others in specific countries.

Identifies key areas needing improvement in land cover classification.

Abstract

Satellite Earth observations (EO) can provide affordable and timely information for assessing crop conditions and food production. Such monitoring systems are essential in Africa, where there is high food insecurity and sparse agricultural statistics. EO-based monitoring systems require accurate cropland maps to provide information about croplands, but there is a lack of data to determine which of the many available land cover maps most accurately identify cropland in African countries. This study provides a quantitative evaluation and intercomparison of 11 publicly available land cover maps to assess their suitability for cropland classification and EO-based agriculture monitoring in Africa using statistically rigorous reference datasets from 8 countries. We hope the results of this study will help users determine the most suitable map for their needs and encourage future work to focus on resolving inconsistencies between maps and improving accuracy in low-accuracy regions.