Politics, Property and Production in the West African Sahel: Understanding Natural Resources Management (review)

This volume arose from Scandinavian researchers' recognition that among them a significant body of research had been undertaken in the Sahel over the last decade or so. The editors brought the contributions together to "investigate processes of reproduction and change and question the evolutionary narratives and the blank acceptance of the irreversibility of natural and social processes," and to "argue against the idea of a permanent and aggravating crisis, but without denying the precarity [sic] of the situation" in the region (p. 18). The volume largely meets these goals, as contributors speak to the importance of historical trajectories, covering the spread of Islam in the 7^th century, French colonization, and the rise and fall of independent states. The book constitutes a unique compilation of fieldwork reporting and reflection, one that will be useful for those already familiar with the region.

The strongest theme running through the book is property rights, particularly the dynamic tension between those who call for the individualization of land tenure and those who advocate constructive common property solutions. One of the editors, Christian Lund, provides a chapter that serves as something of an introduction to property issues, testing two assumptions about property rights in Africa: that private property creates security and leads to investment; and that private property is inherently un-African. The conclusion, which supports attention to the institutional aspects of negotiations and dispute resolution, is bolstered by his case study on the labyrinth of politics around land access in the town of Dori, in Burkina Faso. One of the strongest and most nuanced chapters in the book is Brigette Thebaud's cogitation on the "right of common" in the Sahel, exploring the etymology of and literature around this and related terms in French and English. Thebaud makes clear that Hardin's (1968) infamous "tragedy of the commons" (destructive open access) results only from the failure of institutional regimes, which is not inevitable. Mathieu's treatment of the necessary ambiguity in the rules-in-use in property regimes in Africa draws an insightful picture of the institutional bricolage of the quasi-official markets that have developed around the sale of land, involving the use of documents witnessed by government officials acting beyond their prescribed authority.

The book explores issues concerning natural resource management in the region, including the roles of local, national, and international institutions in the management of natural resources. Many chapters, including Kristine Juul's study of efforts to manage watering resources in the grazing systems of northern Senegal, challenge dominant narratives that overstate the benefits of decentralization. That the installation of permanent boreholes has had major unforeseen negative consequences is not a novel observation, but the institutional lessons bear continued scrutiny. In a comparative analysis of national agricultural extension agencies, Tove Degnbol examines the reputation and accomplishments of the Compagnie Malien de Developpement des Textiles (CMDT), operating in Mali's main cotton zone. He attributes the agency's relative success to more than the simple fact that it was the only agency operating in a zone where agriculture was profitable. At an even broader scale, Lars Engberg Pedersen contrasts three realms: "development," perceived to be an arena of cooperation; "politics," perceived as competition; and "custom," a sort of mythical arena of traditional cooperation. Engberg shows how nongovernment organizations seek to distance themselves from the "political" and play on the "customary" in order to appeal to the "development" crowd, who accept—and even foster—development's false pretenses.

The volume is strongest when it addresses the "fit" of social institutions and practices with the spatial and temporal variability of the Sahelian environment. It sets out to challenge dominant narratives of degradation, a process that in this part of the world is usually equated with desertification. The importance of flexibility in resource use and management under highly...