Opportunities for making the invisible visible: Towards an improved understanding of the economic contributions of NTFPs

Wahlén, Catherine Benson

doi:10.1016/j.forpol.2017.04.006

Cited by 42 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Others have critically reflected on the question of whether forest conservation can occur through the commercialization of NTFPs [36,38,39,64,65]. Several reviews have investigated the contributions of NTFPs, and more generally, of forest or environmental incomes on livelihoods and poverty alleviation (e.g., [1,14,[66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74]). However, these typically do not specifically focus on commercialized NTFPs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Processing of Non-Timber Forest Products through Small and Medium Enterprises—A Review of Enabling and Constraining Factors

Meinhold

Darr

2019

Forests

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Research Highlights: This study reviews the available literature on processed non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in order to comprehensively identify relevant factors enabling or constraining their potential to contribute to rural development. Background and Objectives: NTFPs, such as wild foods, medicinal plants, and raw materials for handicrafts, make significant contributions to rural livelihoods. NTFPs can help fulfil households' subsistence and consumption needs, serve as a safety-net in times of crises, and provide cash income. In particular, the processing of NTFPs has often been suggested to positively influence sustainable economic development in rural areas. However, despite rising interest and recognition of the potential contributions of such industries as key sources of employment and their strategic role in overall growth strategies of developing countries, many NTFP processing enterprises remain in the informal sector and an in-depth understanding of the underlying factors is lacking. This review aims to identify enabling and constraining factors affecting NTFP processing enterprises. Materials and Methods: Using systematic review methodology, studies investigating commercialized, processed NTFPs and their economic impacts have been identified and the current evidence base with regard to NTFP processing and small and medium sized enterprise (SME) development synthesized. Results: Despite the diverse nature of NTFPs, a number of constraining and enabling factors affecting NTFP processing and commercialization were identified. The former includes aspects such as the lack of resource access (finances, skills, technologies, etc.), market information, and basic infrastructure; the latter, amongst others, the role of key entrepreneurs; and cooperation across the value chain, amongst producers, and among members of the institutional environment or an abundant resource base. Moving from small-scale NTFP commercialization in local markets to more mature NTFP value chains reaching export markets, the increasing role of cooperation and having a supportive institutional framework in place, becomes apparent. Conclusions: Overall, successful NTFP processing strongly depends on the socio-economic and environmental context in question, requiring a holistic approach tailored to the respective context and value chain.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Processing of Non-Timber Forest Products through Small and Medium Enterprises—A Review of Enabling and Constraining Factors

Meinhold

Darr

2019

Forests

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“…3 Many hunter-gatherers in the Congo Basin live in extreme material poverty, in an exchange economy, with low literacy and numeracy rates (Jackson 2006). Forests contribute toward a large share of indigenous peoples' consumption or earnings (Godoy et al 2002) and contributions to income from forests may be missed in most survey instruments (Wahlén 2017). Together, these challenges make it difficult to credibly assess how activities to satisfy FSC affect well-being for indigenous peoples.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unintended impacts from forest certification: Evidence from indigenous Aka households in Congo

Doremus

2019

Ecological Economics

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Does Forest Stewardship Council certification of "responsible" commercial forestry change nutrition, health and wealth for indigenous peoples, like the Aka of the Congo Basin? Using hand-collected data from the boundary of a certified and an uncertified forest in the Republic of Congo five years after certification, I compare nutrition, health, and wealth using questions that are locally salient and survey timing designed to reach semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers. Though I only observe outcomes after certification, I find suggestive evidence that forest certification may cause increased food insecurity and illness frequency for Aka households. I find no evidence of increased material wealth; instead, the poorest 15th percentile is poorer. Forest certification includes a bundle of activities, including participatory mapping, greater market integration and hunting restrictions, making it difficult to pinpoint the mechanisms driving these results.

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“…The use of nontimber forest products (NTFPs) is deeply embedded in socio-cultural and economic systems worldwide, both in rural (Belcher et al 2005, Angelsen et al 2014, Wahlén 2017 and urban communities (Schlesinger et al 2015, Hurley and Emery 2018. NTFP use fulfils multiple livelihood functions, including directly providing consumptive goods, saving cash on substitute goods, safety nets during adverse periods, income generation from sale, and maintaining cultural traditions and knowledge (Shackleton 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nontimber forest products as ecological and biocultural keystone species

Shackleton¹,

Ticktin²,

Cunningham³

2018

E&S

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Nontimber forests products (NTFPs) are the mainstay of rural livelihoods and local economies the world over. As such they are of interest to a wide disciplinary range of researchers and development and government agencies seeking to promote livelihoods, incomes, and ecologically sustainable practices. With the attention on the various human uses of NTFPs, their role and networks in the broader biological communities in which they are located are frequently overlooked. Harvesting of many NTFPs has effects not only at the organism and population scales, but also on co-occurring species, some of which may also be NTFPs. Thus, reduction or loss of one NTFP population or species in a specific area may have cascade effects on other NTFP species, including those used for cultural purposes. We illustrate the little appreciated importance of NTFPs in broader ecological and social systems by assessing and illustrating the importance of NTFP species as ecological or biocultural keystones in providing regulating and supporting ecological services to other species and cultural services to people. We present a number of examples where NTFP species act as keystones in ecological and cultural systems, including food, pollination and dispersal, animal health, nutrients, shelter and protection, and cultural symbolism, most of which have not been considered by NTFP researchers and practitioners. From these examples we distill six propositions regarding NTFPs and discuss the value of recognizing some NTFPs as biocultural keystones to acknowledge and highlight their roles at broader scales.

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Opportunities for making the invisible visible: Towards an improved understanding of the economic contributions of NTFPs

Cited by 42 publications

References 27 publications

The Processing of Non-Timber Forest Products through Small and Medium Enterprises—A Review of Enabling and Constraining Factors

The Processing of Non-Timber Forest Products through Small and Medium Enterprises—A Review of Enabling and Constraining Factors

Unintended impacts from forest certification: Evidence from indigenous Aka households in Congo

Nontimber forest products as ecological and biocultural keystone species

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