Management methods and sustainability of dams in Burkina Faso: a multi-criteria analysis

The aim of this article is to define a sustainable management model for dams in the city of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. To this end, the PROMETHEE multi-criteria method was used to evaluate six management models (public, private, community-based, and combinations thereof) according to thirteen criteria incorporating the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The results show that community management is the most effective, while public management is the least suitable, a finding that is confirmed by the sensitivity analysis. This research makes an important theoretical contribution by applying PROMETHEE in an African context, offering an integrated approach to the challenges of governance, ecological sustainability, and social issues. It confirms the relevance of decentralized participatory models, in line with Ostrom’s theory on the management of common goods. The policy implications encourage a transition to structured community management tailored to local realities, integrating political science (power relations), anthropology (local knowledge, social dynamics), and environmental studies (ecosystem management). This transition requires institutional assessment, local capacity building, the creation of autonomous structures, a gradual transfer of public responsibilities, and a solid legal and financial framework. Rigorous monitoring based on socioeconomic and ecological indicators will ensure sustainability.