Keywords
water
Market Garden products
Niger
How to Cite
Abstract
Introduction :
Pesticides play an important role in protecting crops from pests. However, despite their usefulness, they can be harmful to human health and the environment, particularly in cases of direct or indirect exposure, through ingestion of contaminated food or water. This study aims to assess the level of contamination by pesticide residues in massconsumed products as well as in water in Niger.
Methodology :
The samples collected underwent a process of pre-treatment, residue extraction and purification. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to analyze the purified samples.
Results :
A total of 153 samples were analyzed during the study period. Of these, 47 were water samples from wells or boreholes, and 106 were samples of market garden produce made up of various vegetables. Twenty-eight (18.30%) of the treated samples were found to be contaminated with pesticide residues, with Carbaryl and Malathion predominating.
Conclusion :
These results underline the need for more careful, regulated management of pesticide use in Niger.
References
1. Mekonen S, Argaw R, Simanesew A, Houbraken M, Senaeve D, Ambelu A, et al. Pesticide residues in drinking water and associated risk to consumers in Ethiopia. Chemosphere. 2016;162:252-60.
2. Hortense T, Segda BG, Dipama JM. Les pesticides dans les eaux souterraines : cas du sous bassin du massili au Burkina Faso. J P Soaphys. 2024;4(1):CJKA02.
3. Carvalho FP. Agriculture, pesticides, food security and food safety. Environmental Science & Policy. 2006;9(7):685–92.
4. Hernández-Mariano JÁ, Baltazar-Reyes MC, Salazar-Martínez E, Cupul-Uicab LA. Exposure to the pesticide DDT and risk of diabetes and hypertension: Systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2022;239:113865.
5. Mostafalou S, Abdollahi M. Pesticides and human chronic diseases: Evidences, mechanisms, and perspectives. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. 2013;268(2):157–77.
6. Tawaye AY, Alhou B, Adamou AES. Niveau de contamination aux pesticides et risques écotoxicologiques dans deux écosystèmes aquatiques au Niger: Lac Guidimouni et mare de Tabalak. Afrique Science. 2021;18(2):1–13.
7. Philippe V, Neveen A, Marwa A, Ahmad Basel AY. Occurrence of pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables for the Eastern Mediterranean Region and potential impact on public health. Food Control. 2021;119:107457.
8. Kpan K, Yao L, Diemeleou C, Sory T. Pratiques phytosanitaires en agriculture périurbaine et contamination des denrées par les pesticides : cas des maraîchers de Port-Bouët (Abidjan). JAnimPlant Sci. 2019;41(1):6847–63.
9. Kindji YAH, Pazou EYA. Contamination du miel par des résidus de pesticides chimiques dans la Commune de Banikoara (Bénin). International Journal of Biological and Chemical Sciences. 2024;18(5):2001–21.
10. Bruckmann FS, Schnorr C, Oviedo LR, Knani S, Silva LFO, Silva WL, et al. Adsorption and Photocatalytic Degradation of Pesticides into Nanocomposites: A Review. Molecules. 2022;27(19):6261.
11. Kaur R, Singh D, Kumari A, Sharma G, Rajput S, Arora S, et al. Pesticide residues degradation strategies in soil and water: a review. Int J Environ Sci Technol. 2023;20(3):3537–60.
12. Otitoju O, Lewis CC. Health risk assessment of pesticide residues in bean samples from Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria. JECE. 2021;13(1):1–13.
13. Ali S, Ullah MI, Sajjad A, Shakeel Q, Hussain A. Environmental and Health Effects of Pesticide Residues. In: Inamuddin, Ahamed MI, Lichtfouse E, editors. Sustainable Agriculture Reviews 48: Pesticide Occurrence, Analysis and Remediation Vol 2 Analysis. Cham: Springer International Publishing; 2021. p. 311–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54719-6_8
14. Erickson PA, Andreotti G, Remigio RV, Ward MH, Parks CG, Sandler DP, et al. Carbaryl use and incident cancer in the Agricultural Health Study: an updated analysis. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 2025;268:114615.
15. Douny C, Zoumenou YMBG, Aïna M, Toko II, Igout A, Guedegba L, et al. Contamination of Water, Sediment and Fish with Residues of Pesticides Used in Cotton Production in Northern Benin. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 2021;81(3):367–85.
16. Ogbeide O, Tongo I, Ezemonye L. Risk assessment of agricultural pesticides in water, sediment, and fish from Owan River, Edo State, Nigeria. Environ Monit Assess. 2015 Oct;187(10):654.
17. Olisah C, Okoh OO, Okoh AI. Occurrence of organochlorine pesticide residues in biological and environmental matrices in Africa: A twodecade review. Heliyon. 2020 https://www.cell.com/heliyon/abstract/S2405-8440 (20)30363-7
18. Kone H, Yaro FK, LY O, Traore MM, Djiguiba D, Doumbia ML. Contamination des sédiments par les pesticides et les métaux lourds dans le bassin du fleuve Sénégal et ses affluents, République du Mali. Afrique SCIENCE. 2025;26(4):12–27.
19. Kecojević I, Mrkajić D, Tomović V, Bajić B, Lazović M, Joksimović A, et al. Determination of Pesticide Residues in Fresh Fruits in the Serbian Market by LC-MS/MS. Foods. 2025;14(10):1828.
20. El-Sheikh ESA, Ramadan MM, El-Sobki AE, Shalaby AA, McCoy MR, Hamed IA, et al. Pesticide Residues in Vegetables and Fruits from Farmer Markets and Associated Dietary Risks. Molecules. 2022;27(22):8072.
21. Authority (EFSA) EFS. Statement on the available outcomes of the human health assessment in the context of the pesticides peer review of the active substance chlorpyrifos. EFSA Journal. 2019;17(8):e05809.
22. Oshatunberu MA, Oladimeji A, Henry SO, OlalekanRaimi M. Searching for What You Can’t See-Evaluation of Pesticide Residues in Grain Sold at Selected Markets of Southwest Nigeria. medRxiv. 2022: https://afriquescience.net/
23. Jallow M, Awadh D, Albaho M, Devi V, Ahmad N. Monitoring of Pesticide Residues in Commonly Used Fruits and Vegetables in Kuwait. IJERPH. 2017. 25;14(8):833.
24. Ahoudi H, Gnandi K, Tanouayi G, OuroSama K, Yorke JC, Creppy EE, et al. Assessment of pesticides residues contents in the vegetables cultivated in urban area of Lome (southern Togo) and their risks on public health and the environment, Togo. International Journal of Biological and Chemical Sciences. 2018;12(5):2172–85.
25. Ingenbleek L, Hu R, Pereira LL, Paineau A, Colet I, Koné AZ, et al. Sub-Saharan Africa total diet study in Benin, Cameroon, Mali and Nigeria: Pesticides occurrence in foods. Food Chemistry: X. 2019;2:100034.
Metrics
Downloads
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2025 B Garba Hassane, Z Alkassoum Alio, A Elhadji Saley Adamaou, Y Salou Souleymane, A Maiga Diallo, S Falissou Saidou Maman, M Oudou Mossi Maiga, J Dargo Ousmane, H Sidibé Saidou, L Mahaman Sani, O Abdoulaye