Niger's farmers who let the trees grow back
In southern Niger, farmers began protecting and pruning tree stumps that resprouted in their fields, regreening millions of hectares of farmland at very low cost.
The small thing
Instead of clearing every shoot from their fields, farmers chose a few stems growing from old tree stumps, pruned them and protected them so they could grow back into trees.
The problem
By the 1970s and 1980s much of the farmland in southern Niger had been stripped of trees. Farmers there described sand covering their crops, poor yields and a shortage of firewood (Farm Radio International).
Why Farmers of Maradi and Zinder, with agronomist Tony Rinaudo started
Tony Rinaudo, an Australian agronomist working with a mission organisation in Niger from 1981, realised in 1983 that many low 'bushes' in farmers' fields were in fact trees regrowing from living root systems (Right Livelihood). Working with farmers in the Maradi area, he encouraged them to protect this regrowth rather than plant new trees, which had often failed.
What they did
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) means surveying a field, choosing a few healthy stems of useful local species from each stump, cutting the rest for fodder or mulch, pruning the chosen stems and protecting them, and repeating this every few months (Right Livelihood). During the 1984 famine a food-for-work programme introduced the method to about 70,000 people.
In villages such as Dan Saga in Aguié district, farmers' groups set community rules to protect regrowing trees, with committees of men and women monitoring them and a village-run wood market sharing the income (Farm Radio International).
What changed
Researchers including Chris Reij report that farmers in Niger's Maradi and Zinder regions have applied FMNR on 4.2 million hectares (Cotillon, Tappan and Reij, 2021). Right Livelihood puts restored land in Niger at about 5 million hectares with over 200 million trees. In Dan Saga, a farmer leader reported millet yields rising several-fold and wood sales helping families through the 1999–2000 food crisis (Farm Radio International). Rinaudo received the Right Livelihood Award in 2018; the spread of the practice is attributed to farmers themselves as much as to him.
What they learned
Rinaudo has said that the 'underground forest' of living roots was there all along: he had seen the bushes many times without realising their significance. Working with nature and with farmers' own choices proved cheaper than tree planting.
“If you work with nature, miracles are possible.”Tony Rinaudo, as quoted by Right Livelihood
Copy this idea
Practical guidance written by our editors from the sources below. Adapt it to your place, and check local rules and safety first.
- Problem addressed
- Degraded farmland with few trees, poor soil and scarce firewood.
- What to do
- Look for living stumps and root sprouts in fields, choose a few strong stems per stump, prune and protect them, and keep pruning every few months.
- Materials and resources
- A cutting tool, markers (paint or cloth strips) for protected stems, local agreements to keep livestock and cutters away.
- Approximate cost
- Very low
- Skills
- Recognising useful local tree species; basic pruning. Neighbour farmers can teach each other.
- Time
- A few days per field each year; benefits build over several seasons.
- People needed
- One farmer can start; it works best when a whole village agrees on rules.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Risks and limitations
- Too many trees can shade crops, so thin and prune. Agree rules on cutting and grazing to avoid conflict between neighbours.
- How to adapt it
- Works in many drylands where tree roots survive. Combine with mulching and existing farming practices; seek local extension or NGO advice.
- Lessons learned
- Build on what farmers already have rather than bringing in seedlings, and make sure the people who protect the trees benefit from them.
Why it matters
Letting trees regrow in fields will not by itself end hunger or drought in the Sahel. But FMNR shows how farmers can restore soil, shade and fuel on their own land at very low cost, using knowledge and roots that are already there.
What didn't work
Early on, farmers saw trees as competing with crops, and protecting regrowth depended on community rules being followed (Farm Radio International). Earlier tree-planting efforts in the region had largely failed.
Editor's note
Tony Rinaudo is alive and was still promoting the practice in late 2024 (World Vision, December 2024). The practice continues among farmers in Niger and has spread to other countries.
Sources: how do we know?
Evidence level: Documented. Supported by reliable published sources such as UN agencies, award bodies and reputable journalism. Not yet independently re-verified by our editors. What the person says and what independent sources establish are attributed separately in the text.
- award body
Tony Rinaudo, Right Livelihood Award laureate 2018 — Right Livelihood, 2018Supports: Rinaudo in Niger from 1981; 1983 realisation; FMNR steps; 1984 food-for-work spread to about 70,000 people; about 5 million hectares and 200 million trees in Niger; award citation; quotes. - peer reviewed
Land use change and climate-smart agriculture in the Sahel — Suzanne E. Cotillon, G. Gray Tappan, Chris Reij, Oxford Handbook (chapter), via US Geological Survey, 2021Supports: Farmers applied FMNR on 4.2 million hectares in Maradi and Zinder; benefits to soil fertility, crops, fodder and firewood. - reputable journalism
Farmers in Niger benefit from letting trees grow in their fields — Farm Radio International, 30 May 2012Supports: Practice began in Maradi in the 1980s; Dan Saga community rules and wood market; millet yield increases; help in 1999–2000 food crisis. - organisational
The Forest Maker honoured: Tony Rinaudo named development chief in Ghana — Priscilla Adjei-Laryea, World Vision International, 9 December 2024Supports: Rinaudo still active in 2024; FMNR spread to other countries such as Ghana.