In Sahelian Africa, wind erosion forms a major threat to sustainable agricultural food production. The natural scattered woody vegetation of trees and shrubs in the Sahel potentially provides wind erosion control, but it is unknown how much of this vegetation is needed. The aim of this study was to develop and test a field-scale model to calculate wind-blown sediment transport as affected by scattered vegetation elements. The model uses wind speed as the driving force for sediment transport, and it calculates changes in wind speed due to modifications in roughness length in the entire field and by local adaptations around obstacles. The model relates the local wind speed to sediment transport using an exponential equation. Field data of wind speed, vegetation characteristics and sediment transport to test the model were collected in two fields in Northern Burkina Faso. The modeling showed that the influence of large obstacles like trees affect wind speed in the entire area and are more important than smaller obstacles like shrubs. The latter stabilize the soil surface and can trap much sediment in transport. It is concluded that scattered woody vegetation can effectively reduce wind erosion in the Sahel, but that the current levels of vegetation cover in most parts of the Sahel are not sufficient for adequate wind erosion control.