Requirements for and factors affecting biodiversity: a West African perspective

In West Africa, due to over-exploitation of natural resources there is threat of loss of biodiversity. Biodiversity is a matter of survival as it is the source of food, fuel, medicines, housing materials and economic security. Ecological principles necessary for the management of biodiversity must be clearly understood before they can be applied. Critical species, habitats and ecosystems exist throughout the West African landscape ranging from parks, pasture lands, forest reserves to fallow fields. Much of West Africa's biodiversity exists outside the protected area system and they require urgent protection. Improvement in resource management needs to be applied across the full spectrum of ecosystems and habitats within each country. A multi-disciplinary approach is needed in the development and implementation of strategies for the management, conservation and utilization of biodiversity resources on a sustainable basis. More research is however needed and very urgently too in the taxonomy, ecology and utilization of West Africa's biological resources, before they become extinct.