Management of the Community Forests of Rogho and Boala in Central-West Burkina Faso: Balancing Access to Information and Peasant Participation

Abstract

In a dual context characterized, on the one hand, by the proliferation of forest areas made possible by initiatives such as “one department, one forest”, and on the other hand, by the devolution of the management of these forest areas to local populations through decentralization, it is necessary and opportune to investigate the management of these forest resources. Thus, the objective of this study was to analyze the management of two community forests by examining the access of local residents to information related to these forests and their participation in their management. To this end, quantitative data were collected from 201 households living near these forests. The Likert scale, consisting of four possible options, was used to assess the level of access of local residents to information related to the forests and the extent of their participation in forest management. The results of this analysis revealed respective overall mean scores of 3.59 for information access and 2.89 for participation in management, indicating a high level of information access and a moderate degree of peasant participation in forest management. These farmers should be encouraged to maximize their participation in the management of the forests to which they are adjacent.