Глобальный форум по продовольственной безопасности и питанию (Форум FSN)

Poole, N., Audia, C., Kaboret, B. and Kent, R. (2016 forthcoming). Tree products, food security and livelihoods: a household study of Burkina Faso, in Environmental Conservation.

 

This paper examines the contribution of products derived from baobab, shea and néré to rural livelihoods in Burkina Faso. We aimed to explain the social and environmental factors influencing the use of NTFPs by rural households for both home consumption and commercialisation, and to explore the contribution of tree products to food security - particularly important during the dry, hungry season. Tree products are important constituents of local diets.

Emphasis was placed on the roles and responsibilities of women for tree product utilization. Inter- and intra-household relationships governing tree foods were found to vary between regions and tree species, and with gender and household composition. Collection and utilization of tree products differed because of contrasting ecological contexts and the evolving social context, with implications for both food security and commercialisation.

The results suggested that domestication and dissemination of planting and regeneration technologies, and product processing and marketing initiatives, need a gendered and tree-specific approach in order to build on local norms and capacities. Measures for the conservation and management of tree resources are most important where ecological constraints are most severe but dependence is greatest for sustaining food security.