Gestion des forlts inondées dans le Delta Interieur du Niger, Mali; management of flood forests in the Inner Niger Delta, Mali

Abstract

Flood forests of Acacia kirkii in the Inner Niger Delta, Mali, host large mixed colonies of waterbirds and play a key role in the production of fish fry and the fertilization of surrounding fields. These forests were managed in a sustainable way by local people, until many were destroyed during the drought periods in the 1970s and 1980s. Local populations wish to regenerate these forests, but without outside assistance they fail to do so, due to conflicts of interest