The Status and Distribution of Freshwater Biodiversity in Western Africa

Abstract

viiiBiodiversity within inland water ecosystems in western Africa is both highly diverse and of great regional importance to livelihoods and economies. However, western Africa is currently undergoing huge levels of development, with a population which is projected to double by 2050 to over 600 million people. Development activities are not always compatible with the conservation of this diversity and it is poorly represented within the development planning process. One of the main reasons cited for inadequate representation of biodiversity is a lack of readily available information on the status and distribution of inland water taxa.