Methods and results in the management of natural resources

As a Sahelian, landlocked and essentially agricultural country, natural resource management in Burkina Faso is a highly strategic issue. This is the case for the management of natural resources in the Kou watershed. Indeed, several methods and approaches have been used to ensure sustainable management of natural resources and associated ecosystems in this basin, but the results have fallen short of expectations because the natural resources continue to degrade, sometimes at an accelerated rate. This situation has led us to reexamine the methods used, from the customary methods deployed before colonization to those used during and after colonization. The guiding thread of our study is, in the light of current and future needs and challenges, strengths and weaknesses of these methods, how to do better to ensure sustainable management of natural resources and associated ecosystems in this basin in order to make them levers of sustainable local development so desired.