ABSTRACT

Wildfires are an important ecological threat in Côte d’Ivoire with the northern half the most affected zone. This study assessed farmers’ perception of wildfire occurrence in the N’Zi River Watershed and compared this perception to remotely sensed fire data trends. To this end, 259 farmers were individually interviewed and 18 farmers were involved in three focus group discussions in three agro-ecological zones. A combination of descriptive statistics and regression analysis was used for data analysis. Results showed that 78.75% of farmers observed the upward trend in the annual wildfire activity identified by remote sensing data during 2001–2016. Most of the respondents identified hunting (65.83%), farm establishment (50%) and firebreaks establishment (46.67%) as main causes of wildfires. The perceived impacts of wildfires included immediate crop burning, crop growth delaying, mid-term post-fire crop destruction, destruction of material goods and loss of human life. Local population developed endogenous strategies to cope with this scourge. Amongst identified coping strategies, firebreaks establishment and maintenance around new clearings and farms and prohibition of fire-hunting during the dry season were highlighted. Therefore, policies and institutions that support local wildfires management initiatives must take advantage of the strong community knowledge and networks to strengthen their effectiveness and sustainability.

摘要

野火是科特迪瓦的一个重要生态威胁，北半部是受影响最严重的地区。本研究评估了农民对 N'Zi 河流域野火发生的看法，并将这种看法与遥感火灾数据趋势进行了比较。为此，对 259 名农民进行了单独访谈，18 名农民参与了三个农业生态区的三个焦点小组讨论。数据分析采用描述性统计和回归分析相结合。结果显示，78.75%的农户观察到2001-2016年遥感数据识别的年度野火活动呈上升趋势。大多数受访者认为狩猎（65.83%）、农场建设（50%）和防火带建设（46.67%）是野火的主要原因。野火的感知影响包括作物立即燃烧、作物生长延迟、火灾后中期作物破坏、物质商品破坏和人类生命损失。当地居民制定了应对这一祸害的内生战略。在确定的应对策略中，重点强调了在新空地和农场周围建立和维护防火带，以及在旱季禁止灭火。因此，支持当地野火管理举措的政策和机构必须利用强大的社区知识和网络来加强其有效性和可持续性。在确定的应对策略中，重点强调了在新空地和农场周围建立和维护防火带，以及在旱季禁止灭火。因此，支持当地野火管理举措的政策和机构必须利用强大的社区知识和网络来加强其有效性和可持续性。在确定的应对策略中，重点强调了在新空地和农场周围建立和维护防火带，以及在旱季禁止灭火。因此，支持当地野火管理举措的政策和机构必须利用强大的社区知识和网络来加强其有效性和可持续性。