The high costs of rehabilitating and/or expanding government-managed irrigated schemes in Mali (Office du Niger) has prompted policy-makers and researchers to explore the potential for the underdeveloped farmer-managed bas-fond to contribute to ensure an adequate rice supply and increase rural households' incomes. Because little is known about nas-fond rice production in Mali, this paper analyzes its financial profitability based on data collected from a random sample of 221 farmers. Data analysis revealed that there are numerous rice production systems in the bas-fond. Budget analysis showed that the four most common bas-fond production systems yield higher returns than the opportunity cost of labor and they are more profitable than the main upland crops competing with rice for farmers labor (cotton, sorghum/millet, and maize). Within a given bas-fond system,
however, profitability varies considerably across farms
