Preliminary Findings on the Diet and Nutritional Status of Some Tamasheq and Fulani Groups in the Niger Delta of Central Mali

Between June 1981 and December 1982, a detailed household socio-economic study was conducted amongst selected communities of the inner Niger Delta of central Mali. One part of this longitudinal survey was a detailed examination of the nutritional status (anthropometry) and dietary habits of two groups; two camps of purely pastoral Kel Tamasheq and two villages of agro-pastoral Fulani. One of the aims of the larger socio-economic survey was to identify seasonal periods of stress, since for most of the Sahel, especially for the pastoral groups, little is known about nutritional status, energy expenditure and food intake on a seasonal basis.