Parkland agroforests are mixtures of trees and shrubs that farmers select for certain functions and cultivate together with staple food crops. In the West African Sahel, parkland trees and shrubs provide essential products and services for rural communities, and thereby contribute to poverty alleviation and food security. The principal products include wood for energy, construction, furniture, household and farm implements; fruits and leaves for food; numerous traditional medicines; fibers for roofs, mats and fencing. Environmental services of parkland trees and shrubs, such as soil and water conservation, are crucial because the region is semi‐arid and the soils are generally infertile. A participatory project to improve the management and productivity of native tree and shrub species in parkland agroforests was initiated in the West African Sahel in 2006. The first major activity was to determine farmers’ preferences for tree functions and the priority species for these functions. In this paper, we present results of preference surveys conducted in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Senegal.
