 It has been hypothesized that the city grew as a trade center due to its location on the southern portion of the agriculturally productive region of the delta.It was likely that rice produced in this region would have been a valuable trade for Saharan commodities such as salt, copper and dried fish.Djenné-Djenno would have been an excellent middle ground between traders from North Africa and the Mediterranean and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa.