Congo Livelihood Improvement and Food Security Project

Forest Policy and Economics, 2012

Community dependence on forest resources for diverse needs has high implications for long term management of forests. Sustainable extraction of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) is considered best feasible strategy for forest conservation in biodiversity rich areas. This paper examines the heterogeneity of NTFPs use by tribal communities in northeast India, a global hot spot by examining diversity of NTFPs at-large, its consumption pattern, and contribution to rural income and forest revenue. A total of 343 NTFPs recorded used for diverse purposes by tribal communities. When species choice grouped as per use category, utilization for medicinal (163 species), edible fruits (75 species) and vegetables (65 species) purposes was reasonably high. Community dependence on forest resources was 100% for firewood and house construction material. 76 plant species were sold in three major local markets while an additional 22 species traded at commercial scale mainly outside the state. NTFPs contributed 19-32% of total household income for different tribal communities, which was significant. Illicium griffithii, Rubia cordifolia, Oroxylum indicum, Swertia chirayita, Litsea sebifera, Taxus wallichiana, Valeriana jatamansii, Thalictrum foliolosum, Picrorhiza kurrooa, Everniastrum cirrhatum, Cordyceps sinensis, Aconitum fletcherianum, Nardostachys jatamansi, Picrorhiza kurrooa, Gymnadenia orchidis, Calamus, Quercus and Pinus roxbughii were important commercial species. NTFPs also generated substantial revenue to the State government, though it is falling year after year, which is alarming. To meet community livelihoods, income and forest revenue from NTFPs, it desires a thorough management plan and policy guidelines for these resources from all line departments. The knowledge on diversity, its consumption pattern, and contribution to rural income and forest revenue may enable planners to accurately plan sustainable management of NTFP resources and community development in near future.

The objective of this study is to contribute towards the promotion of NTFPs from various origins by assessing their contribution in sustaining the livelihood of communities in Mifi Division and the domestication potential of some of the NTFP species. The study was carried out in the Mifi Division in the West Region of Cameroon. Respondent were drawn from a cross-section of exploiters and marketers. Data were collected through the administration of semi-structured questionnaires and interview guides as well as direct observations with actors including 65 wholesalers, 150 retailers and 120 households. Data analysis was carried out using Excel 2016 to generate tables and graphs, and ARCGIS 10.1 to generate the map of the areas of origin of NTFPs. Results revealed that 29 species are used in the Division but almost all (28 species) come from areas out of Mifi. Parts used for consumption consist of 36,84% fruits, 36.84% seeds, 10.52% leaves, 5.26% sap, 5.26% mushrooms and 5,26% rhizome while their use for medicinal purposes consist of 42,85% barks, 28.57% fruits, 14.28% seeds and 7.14% leaves and rhizome. In total, species are used as food (46.55%), medicine (36.2%), for construction and furniture (6.89%), packaging (6.89%) and cosmetics (3.44%). NTFPs are becoming increasingly rare, reason for the need of an effective domestication of the most used species. NTFPs mainly Garcinia kola and Tetrapleura tetraptera with higher assets and low constraints can potentially be domesticated in the Mifi Division in order to reduce overexploitation and promote sustainable management of NTFPs in the present context of climate change. There are many favorable conditions including, the need of small financial capital, the interest of intercommunity groups and available workforce. Some constraints persist such as the lack of young plants, lack of technical assistance and financial support.

2013

Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs) are goods of biological origin (plant, fungi and animal) from natural, modified or managed forested landscapes. They include fruits and nuts; vegetables; fish and game; medicinal plants; resins; essences; fuel wood and barks; and fibres such as bamboo, rattans and other palms and grasses. The term 'non-wood forest products' is also used, which excludes all woody raw materials, including fuel wood and small woods used for domestic tools and equipment, covered by the term NTFPs. Also excluded are exotic forest products now farmed and found in the wild in the Congo Basin, such as rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) and quinine (Chinconia spp.). Fuel wood is classified as an NTFP in the legal framework in Gabon, the Central African Republic and Cameroon. NTFPs are often classified by their use, with the most common uses being food; forage; utensils; tools for construction; medicines; aromatic products and colorants; and objects of ornament, art and of cultural value. All parts of both plants and animals are used and can be classified as NTFPS: fruits, seeds, leaves, stems, barks, resins, roots, flowers and wood; meat, hides, hair, horns, hooves and other animal parts. Often different parts of the same plant or animals are used for multiple purposes. These products may be directly consumed, sold, given as gifts or bartered. High-value NTFPs such as bush mango (Irvingia gabonensis), eru or fumbwa (Gnetum spp.), honey and wax, gum arabic, raffia (Raphia farinifera), cola acuminata, safou (Dacryodes edulis) and pygeum (Prunus africana) provide on average 42% of annual income for harvesters' households. In the main production areas, the price received by harvesters can be determined by the market, the season, the level of organisation of producers (meeting buyers individually or in group), the abundance of production, consumer demand, the costs of taking the product to market and the perishability of the product.

Forests are a large reservoir of biodiversity on which riparian populations frequently rely. Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are an important source of income for millions of people living in forest-adjacent communities. This study aims at characterizing the types and uses of NTFPs in order to determine whether their exploitation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is sustainable. Interviews and direct observation were carried out with NTFP stakeholders (harvesters, sellers, and consumers) in Kalonge, near the Kahuzi-Biega National Park. The results showed that 40 NTFPs of plant origin and 10 NTFPs of animal origin are commonly exploited and used in food and traditional medicine. The most common NTFP harvesting techniques are debarking, picking, digging up, felling, and wine extraction, which are all tailored to the plant part. A significant relationship (p-value< 0.001) has been established between the types of NTFPs used and harvesting methods as well as between ...

World Development, 2005

Understanding of the role and potential of nontimber forest products (NTFPs) for livelihood improvement and conservation has been hindered by a lack of a clear theoretical framework and a functional typology of cases. To help fill this gap, we did a comparative analysis of 61 cases of commercial NTFP production in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Cases were documented using a standardized set of descriptors organized into categories describing various aspects of the production-to-consumption system. Exploratory analysis yielded useful case groupings by (a) household economic strategy and (b) NTFP production strategy. These groups and their key characteristics are used as a basis for discussing the development and conservation implications of NTFPs. * This paper is one product of a large collaboration over several years to which many people have contributed. First and foremost, we thank the authors for documenting and sharing their insights on individual cases and on the overall comparative analysis. Sven Wunder, J.E.M. Arnold, Doug Sheil, Arild Angelsen, and two anonymous reviewers provided valued help with detailed comments and suggestions on earlier versions of the paper.

2010

were reviewed, filling the gap since the last national and regional studies in 1998 and 2004. Comprehensive data about nationally representative consumption, trade volumes and values exists only for some NTFPs. This absence explains why data from the 1990s are often reiterated and large gaps remain in scientific knowledge about species and the absence of sustainable consumption patterns and trade for many species. It also explains the inconsistencies in regulations and policy making. The Cameroonian 1994 Forestry Law identifies and sets out controls for 'Special Forestry Products', many of which are NTFPs. However it does not define NTFPs nor is there an explicit logic in the selection of products or prioritisation of NTFPs to enable sustainable management or monitoring.

CIFOR, Bogor, Indonesia eBooks, 2004

Achieving a fair and sustainable trade in devils claw (Harpagophytum spp.) 53 Rachel Wynberg Chapter 5 The informal trade of Cassipourea flanaganii as a cosmetic in South Africa 73 Michelle Cocks and Tony Dold iv FRUITS AND OILS Chapter 6 The contribution of shea butter (Vitellaria paradoxa C.F. Gaertner) to local livelihoods in Benin Kathrin Schreckenberg Chapter 7 A case study of Garcinia kola nut production-to-consumption system in J4 area of Omo forest reserve, Southwest Nigeria Atilade Akanmu Adebisi Chapter 8 Potential for development and conservation of Dacryodes edulis

Davies/Bushmeat, 2007

ASC-TUFS Working Papers 2018 "Development, Migration, and Resources in Africa", 2019

Although viewed as low-power income product, trade in Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) in rural communities represent a major source of income for local residents who depend on them for revenue and subsistence. This study is based on monitoring and quantitative recording of each NTFP gathering by villagers. The results revealed that the main products collected include: Irvingia gabonensis, Aframomum spp., Pentaclethra macrophylla; Ricinodendron heudelotii, and Afrostyrax lepidophyllus. The main stakeholders in NTFPs value chain were identified as: collectors, local traders, semi-distributors, intermediaries, and wholesalers (Nigerian and Malian Settled in the village). The prices of these NTFPs fluctuate between 0.09-0.67 USD per kilogram (kg) at village level. However, these products are generally resold between 0.67-4.44 USD per kg in urban market. The commercialization of NTFPs is less beneficial to rural collectors compared to the other stakeholders involved, whereas they are the main contributors of NTFPs value chain. The main reason for this are the poor organization of collectors, low access to market information, low power in price negotiation, lack of storage and drying facilities, ambient poverty in rural areas as well as the high purchasing power of wholesalers who intervene in the value chain. The strengthening of the capacities for local population on drying, conservation and processing techniques; pricing; the principle of group sale of NTFPs; the creation and empowerment of collectors organization; their networking with buyers; the development of market information systems; and an enabling environment that facilitates market access to local collectors will improve the profitability of NTFP value chain in the area.

2007

Agroforestry tree domestication as a farmer-driven, market-led process emerged as an international initiative in the early 1990s, although a few studies pre-date this. A participatory approach now supplements the more traditional aspects of tree improvement, and is seen as an important strategy for meeting the Millennium Development Goals of eradicating poverty and hunger and promoting social equity. Considerable progress towards the domestication of indigenous fruits and nuts has been achieved in many villages in Cameroon and Nigeria that focuses on 'ideotypes', based on an understanding of the tree-to-tree variation in many commercially important traits. Vegetatively propagated cultivars are being developed by farmers for integration into their polycultural farming systems, especially cocoa agroforests. However, if agroforestry is to be adopted on a scale that has meaningful economic, social and environmental impacts, it is crucial that markets for agroforestry tree products (AFTPs) are expanded. Detailed studies of the commercialization of AFTPs, especially in southern Africa, provide support for the wider acceptance of the role of indigenous tree domestication in the enhancement of livelihoods for poor farmers in the tropics. Consequently, policy guidelines are presented in support of this new approach to sustainable rural development -an alternative to the biotechnology approaches being promoted by some development agencies. trees to the commercialization of their products and examines the important role that markets play in the adoption of agroforestry and in the achievement of some of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Finally, it suggests that the domestication and commercialization of AFTPs represents a rural development paradigm that is appropriate for wider implementation in developing countries.