The challenge of HIV/AIDS: Where does agroforestry fit in? - World ...

16World Agroforestry into the Futureso that the shade trees are also companioncrops (Leakey and Tchoundjeu 2001). Thishas been done as a risk-aversion strategyto provide new sources of income, in responseto fluctuating market prices. Interestingly,cocoa is not the only former plantationcash crop to now be an importantagroforestry species. Rubber is perhaps thebest example, especially in Southeast Asia(Tomich et al. 2001), while tea and coffeeare moving in the same direction.A somewhat different but interesting exampleof AFTP commercialization is thecase of marula, a tree of dry Africa, whichis starting to be marketed by subsistencefarmers for traditional beer and for industrialprocessing as an internationallymarketed liqueur, ‘Amarula’, by DistellCorporation. Marula kernel oil (‘Maruline’)is also breaking into international cosmeticsmarkets. This species thus provides anopportunity to examine the impact of differentcommercialization strategies on thelivelihoods of the producers, the sustainabilityof the resource and the economicand social institutions. In other words, whoor what are the winners and losers arisingfrom the commercialization of indigenousfruits and nuts?Winners and losers: impacts onlivelihoodsThe Centre for Ecology and Hydrology,UK,in collaboration with a wide range of institutions,conducted a large, multidisciplinary,multi-institutional study to determinethe ‘winners and losers’ of the various commercializationstrategies for a number ofdifferent NTFP products from two tree species(S. birrea and Carapa guianensis) in differentenvironments and in structurally andethnically different communities (Shackletonet al. 2003a; Sullivan and O’Regan2003). The study specifically examined theeffects of commercialization on the fiveforms of livelihood capital (human, social,financial, natural and physical). In brief,the authors concluded that to improve thelivelihood benefits from commercializingNTFPs it is important to improve:• The quality and yield of the productsthrough: domestication and the disseminationof germplasm; and enhancing theefficiency of post-harvest technology (extraction,processing, storage, and so on).• The marketing and commercializationprocesses by: diversifying markets forexisting and new products; investing inmarketing initiatives and campaigns;and promoting the equitable distributionof benefits.The following lessons were learnt forNTFP commercialization from the study ofS. birrea (abridged from Shackleton et al.2003b), that apply equally to AFTPs:• NTFPs are most important for poor andmarginalized people.• NTFPs make up income shortfalls butdo not significantly alleviate poverty.How domestication may change this stillneeds to be determined.• Engagement in NTFP commercializationand the extent of benefits is variableeven among the poorest households.• Benefits of NTFP commercializationmust be weighed against the negativesocial and cultural costs of commercialization.• Land and usufruct rights must be clear,government intervention must bepitched at the appropriate level, andpolitical support for the NTFP industrymust be secured.• NTFP commercialization can lead to improvedmanagement and conservationof the resource in certain circumstances.• NTFP cultivation needs to be community-ownedand driven.• Benefits can be accrued at the local level.• Intellectual property right (IPR) systemsthat promote poverty alleviation, foodsecurity and sustainable agriculture areurgently needed.• Models of commercialization based onpartnerships between producer communities,non-governmental organizations(NGOs) and the private sector are mostlikely to succeed.• The diversification of species used,products produced, markets traded, andplayers involved, is an extremely importantstrategy to minimize the risks ofNTFP commercialization for rural communities.• Scaling up and introducing new technologiescan shift benefits away fromwomen and the most marginalized producers.• NTFPs form only part of a far broaderecological, economic, social and politicallandscape. For example, continuedland clearance, the need for biomass energy,and wood for woodcarvings can bea greater threat than the commercializationof a fruit product.• NTFP trade and industries are dynamicin space and time. There are seldom permanentwinners and losers.The conclusion from this study was thatNTFP commercialization can create bothwinners and losers, but positive outcomescan be maximized if external players promotecommunity involvement, and if thecommunities themselves work together anduse their own strengths to manage and usetheir resources effectively. This is supportedby the findings of a study investigating therole of tree domestication in poverty alleviation(Poulton and Poole 2001). Nevertheless,to ensure that those engaged inparticipatory domestication are winners,the current difficulties facing farmers