Land-Use Management and Rural Development Strategies

Since the 1970s, Burkina Faso has undertaken reforms aimed at improving production and management techniques and structures-essential factors for promoting the rural economy. These reforms involve the design of multifaceted projects, such as the agricultural use of peri-urban lands through activities that meet urban food needs (market gardening, rice cultivation, dairy production, and pig and poultry farming); the development of marginal lands for agriculture, primarily for pastoral purposes: the transition of transhumant livestock herding to a sedentary system; agricultural development in valleys, based on the dual objective of increasing productivity and alleviating demographic pressure on overexploited areas; finally, the decentralization or transfer of resources to local authorities, intended to foster a sense of ownership of the development initiative while improving local governance. Researchers, professionals, and development institutions will gain firsthand insight into some aspects of the ongoing evolution.