Paper presented at the symposium "Forestry Research 1988; Future Needs in Southern Africa", 20 to 22 September 1988. Organised by the Southern African Institute of Forestry. The common concept of Prosopis is of a noxious, thorny, invasive exotic that threatens to infest much of the best land in the arid and semi-arid parts of Southern Africa. While this notion is not without some validity, it fails to take into account the fact that six species of the genus have become established in the region and that not all of these show any real tendency to spread. Prosopis spp. can be exploited for food, fodder, honey, fencing material, fuel and wood pulp. In dry areas the more desirable taxa, notably P. chilensis and hybrids between it and P. glandulosa var. torreyana, would seem to have a legitimate place in stock farming, agroforestry and the production of firewood and charcoal. Nevertheless, selection for pod quality and heavy cropping potential needs to be undertaken before they can be recommended unhesitatingly as fodder trees. Impenetrable thickets of Prosopis spp. present a dilemma, for they make inroads upon valuable pasturage without providing any pods in return, yet their permanent eradication is not economically feasible. Pragmatic solutions to the problem are suggested.