<P> In 1947, Upper Volta was reestablished, and the French Sudan borders became those that eventually became the borders of Mali . Kayes was the original capital city from the 1890s until 1908, when the capital moved to Bamako, where it remains . </P> <P> The colony supported mostly rain - fed agriculture, with limited irrigation for its first 30 years . The only cash crops were nuts gathered close to the railroad between Kayes and Bamako . However, following successful tests of growing Egyptian cotton in West Africa during World War I, Émile Bélime began to campaign for the construction of a large irrigation system along the Niger river . Starting in 1921, significant irrigation projects around Koulikoro and later at Baguinéda - Camp and the Ségou Cercle began to bring water . The French believed this project could rival the major cotton growing centers of Egypt and the United States . </P> <P> Unlike other agricultural projects in French West Africa, the French Sudan irrigation project initially relied on families voluntarily resettling along lines established by the colonial authority . Unable to attract enough volunteers, the colonial authorities began to try forced resettlement to the cotton project . The Office du Niger was founded in 1926 as the main organization facilitating planned, irrigated agricultural projects . Farmers resisted forced resettlement and petitioned for permanent land rights to the irrigated land (which was usually held as property of the Office du Niger). Despite these efforts, a significant cash crop economy did not develop in the French Sudan . </P> <P> Like much of the rest of French West Africa, the colony had a number of policies regarding Islam and the Muslim communities . The Arabic language and Islamic law were preferred in the colony by the French in the establishment of colonial government, largely because both were codified, and thus easy to standardize . </P>

Which of the following was the first known kingdom in western sudan