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World Agroforestry into the Future
Project suggestions within TM1 spanned
the entire range from helping farmers
to start producing, to developing niche
markets for new products. For those farmers
who do not have enough capital to
start production, the group suggested that
it would be a good idea to start a credit
scheme. Further en route to market, it is
the post-harvest processing of produce
that is crucial – and something that can
easily be overlooked. However, to achieve
real success in the global market, there
should be product differentiation and
ways of ensuring that goods are unique
and of a high quality. One project the
group suggested would test the appellation
concept for agroforestry products.
This is a scheme employed in Europe to
identify regions of excellence for certain
products. Another way to create a niche
market is to promote indigenous or local
products; for example essential oils or
craftwork. All these developments need
to be supported by the right agroforestry
policies, and therefore starting a discussion
and maybe even lobbying on policy
improvement for agroforestry products
would be a step in the right direction.
To reach these visions, ICRAF would
need a product development strategy that
included production of enterprise development
manuals, market development
guides, consumer surveys for at least six
products (preferably worldwide), periodic
market bulletins and databases of products,
prices and other market information.
Some of this could be accomplished by
including market information on existing
websites. Scientific publications, policy
briefs and reports on lessons learned are
also important outputs. Some members
of the working group felt that a big media
promotion campaign would help to get
products and marketing processes rolling.
TM2 – developing sustainable seed
and seedling systems and sound
management of agroforestry genetic
resources
The group discussing TM2 felt that it was
hard to predict the desirable situation in
2015. However, they agreed that flexibility
is the key as demand for seeds and seedlings
is always changing, particularly in
terms of the quality, quantity, variety and
diversity of agroforestry products needed.
The main problems the working group
identified included:
• Intermittent demand that is unpredictable
and often disappears totally
• Lack of marketplace intelligence
• Inadequate information and training
• Inadequate or expensive seed supply in
villages
• The existence of free handouts that constrain
private sector development
• Farmers not knowing their options, and
• Inadequate policies and institutional arrangements.
Partnerships (both new and old) with various
institutions were suggested by the group as
ways of countering these problems. Those
mentioned included communities, national
seed centres, non-governmental organizations
(NGOs), research centres, local governments,
private entrepreneurs (nursery
owners, seed growers), and ministerial-level
government officials. To raise awareness and
money it was suggested that grammar/primary
schools could sell tree seed and that
ICRAF could publish a seed calendar. ICRAF
should make people aware of the availability
of germplasm outside their area.
To build up knowledge and expertise in
the TM2 area, a lot of research needs to be
done, and the working group suggested that
one useful project would be to look at the
tree seed sector as a whole to gain sound
background knowledge. This could lead to
the development of small-scale strategies
with regional benefits, for example where
locally grown seed was sold to local farmers
and not necessarily grown for a large,
national programme. Tying in with the question
on partnerships, the working group felt
that developing strategies under the umbrella
of national agroforestry networks, who
could then take the ideas further with their
own task forces and would also enhance
our knowledge of the field.
In order to ensure that these ideas are
brought to fruition, the working group
thought that what is needed the most is
more information, which can be taught by
ICRAF or shared between farmers. ICRAF
should also play a major role in the sharing
of tree germplasm – either by organizing
exchanges itself or by helping to develop
germplasm supply strategies at the national
level.
TM3 – tree domestication with
intensification and diversification of
tree cultivation systems
The working group noted that farmers who
grow many different types of crops/trees
reduced their environmental and economic
risk and this contributed to poverty alleviation.
However, sustainability – both of
livelihoods and of traditional ways – is the
important factor. Therefore, the the group’s
vision for TM3 included using domestication
strategies to capture indigenous knowledge
for future generations. In a similar vein, it
was suggested that by 2015 we will have
learnt to appreciate natural products (e.g.
natural dyes) and to recognize the untapped
commercial potential in intact ecosystems.
On-farm, the group predicted that there
would be more cultivation of particular