Guiding conservation and sustainable use through National Prunus africana Management Plans. Ingram prunus bioversity workshop oct 2010

1. Guiding conservation and
sustainable use through National
Prunus africana Management
Plans
Bioversity
Workshop
“Development of
strategies for the
conservation and
sustainable use of
Prunus africana to
improve the
livelihood of smallscale farmers”
25-29 October 2010
Yaoundé, Cameroon
Verina Ingram
Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Central Africa
v.ingram@cgiar.org
THINKING beyond the canopy
THINKING beyond the canopy

2. Prunus africana
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Afromontane evergreen tree patchy
distribution at 600-3000 m a.s.l. particularly ≥
1700 - 3010 m. Montane forests scarce (1.4%
of all African forests: 1% Cameroon & 1.1%
Eq.Guinea forests)
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Cherry like fruit eaten & dispersed by 20+
species; 50% are Afromontane endangered
&/or endemic e.g. P. Africana one of 13 critical
species in Cameroon montane forests.
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Major harvest areas have high degradation &
deforestation rates e.g. Cameroon (0.37% pa
[0.0017 ha/pa], with 52% forest loss in last 52
years [Kilum Ijum]), Madagascar & Kenya
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Multiple timber (fuel, tools, carving ) & NTFP
uses (bark for human & veterinary medicine)
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Major international trade: 9622 tons
worldwide 2001-2007. Principal ingredient in
prostatic hyperplasia pharmaceuticals (Europe)
& health supplements (US & China)
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3. Background: over-exploitation, respite & action
Cameroon example : worlds largest exporter (2007) after 15 years of intense harvesting
Self-imposed moratoriums and suspensions following 2007 EU trade suspension.
Allows an ecological respite but also adverse effects on livelihoods of unknown impact
In response to these changes, lobbies reflecting the diverse and conflicting interests
emerged across African exporting nations.
A participatory developed national management plan has been the route chosen to
respond to concerns by actors in the Cameroon trade chain
The route from an endangered species towards domestication, analysing the planning
process for conservation and sustainable management is presented for
Cameroon, Madagascar and Equatorial Guinea.
Paradoxical context in which this non-timber species is found, traded and used, means
that risks and opportunities for successful conservation and trade through proposed
National Management Plans need to be critically examined.
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4. Problem:
international trade leads to endangered status
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Regulated since 1974 in Cameroon and 1972 in Madagascar but for revenue
maximisation, rather than conservation logic
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Despite long lived & ability to withstand repeated bark harvest – demand
increased dramatically 600% in last 40 years
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The shift from subsistence to international trade raised concerns about
overexploitation of wild stocks
Leading to
– Appearance on the IUCN Red List (Endangered) in 1998
– Trade restrictions (CITES Appendix II listed ) in 2005
– ‘Special Forestry Product’ classification in Cameroon in 2006
– EU suspension of international trade November 2007
– CITES suspension of DRC, Eq. Guinea & Tanzania as non compliant with
Article IV. Others countries implemented voluntary suspension February
2009
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But national stocks of wild P. africana largely un-quantified and cultivated stocks
completely unknown in Cameroon
Conflicting interests; conservation vs. immediate livelihood needs
Regulations not enforced nor harvest monitored, and market arrangements
counterproductive to sustainable trade
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Photo: K Stewart

5. 1%
0.1%
66%
0.2%
>1%
27%
Main harvest zones
49%
4%
Prunus
africana
range and
trade
= Management plan
21%
= former trade & % world
1%
exports 1995-2007
16%
1%
= border trade
1%
= traditional medicinal use &
trade
7%
6%
= main importers & % world
imports 1995-2007
Source: Cunningham 2008, Hall et al .2000,
CITES WCMC 2008
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6. Hypothesis
1.
International, lucrative trade of a wild resource is
inherently unsustainable given livelihood
pressures.
2.
Management impossible without knowledge of
resource availability and sustainable post harvest
regeneration period
3.
Actors and issues in chain unknown to each other
→ market arrangements with conflicting interests
& leading to (unknown) unsustainable harvests.
4.
A participatory developed management plan
involving all actors in the chain could respond to
pressures to create a sustainable Prunus africana
commerce and reconcile conflicting pressures.
Kongo CF,
Kilim CF, December 2008
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Exploitation since 1972; periods of
centralisation & decentralisation, many
and few companies
Sofia Northwest area overexploited by
1984, shift to Eastern reserves; by 1994
to many scattered sites, by 1999
returned to Sofia, injunction 2002
Both importer and exporter- due to
Indena SpA factory in 1995
2003: finalised and valided ‘Plan
d’action national pour la gestion
durable du Prunus africana’: ecological
(inventory & harvest guide), socioeconomic, genetic & legal measures
Resulted by 2005 in limited permits
Average 200t pa 2000-2007
2007: Trade suspended
2008: World Bank project proposed for
regeneration and to develop
management plan, expected end 2009
Plan not yet finalized
Madagascar
Tons imported 2001-2006
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6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
Source WCMC CITES Database 2008
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8. •1998 inventory (Sunderland & Tako 1999)
indicated high levels unsustainable harvest
•Historic ties Spain & Equatorial Guinea + bark
exports to Spain, lead to a pilot project on
Bioko Island, promoted & funded by the
General Directorate for Biodiversity, Ministry of
Environment (CITES scientific Authority
Spain), June 2004
• Exported from 1992 to 1998, ceased 19992002, 2005 last unsustainable harvest. 1992 –
1998 = average 210 tons pa exported
• 2006 ‘’Evaluation of the Harvest of Prunus
africana Bark on Bioko (Equatorial Guinea):
Guidelines for a Management Plan’’
(University Cordoba), Spain conducted
remote sensing, inventory , bark yield
estimate, proposed a quota and harvest
guidelines
•This model promoted for other countries and
areas (at CITES meeting Lima 2007 & Kenya
2008)
• Plan not adopted- political reasons
Equatorial Guinea
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9. 1. Increase revenues of small and medium enterprises involved production
and commercialisation of Prunus africana
Aims
2. Manage resources sustainably for both current and future generations
Build NTFP sector
actors capacity in
production and
commercialisation
Promote
favorable legal &
institutional
environment for
small & medium
enterprises
Improve
production and
harvesting
techniques of
NTFPs
Develop
sustainable
market chains
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10. Background
Field work
• Harvest zone selection – stakeholder interviews (2007)
• Inventory - transects 3 zones (2007-2008)
• Bark regeneration post-harvest study – 4 zones (2009)
• 193 semi & structured interviews actors in chains & 5 market surveys (2007-2008)
VCA
2007-2009
Action data
collection
Analysis
Outputs
• Participatory action research: SWOT, stakeholder analysis, 6 working sessions
stakeholder groups & 1 all stakeholder workshop, participatorily developed
management plan
• Capacity building events; group organisation
• Data analysis SPSS and Excel, TIAMA, interpretation satellite images, SWOT, GIS
mapping
• Preliminary findings verified in meetings & peer cross-checked
• Value chain maps: Visualisations
• Reports: Problem analysis workshop report, Inventory in NW & SW
Cameroon, Guidelines for a National Management Plan for Prunus africana in
Cameroon, Assessment sustainable harvest methods, Baseline study of Prunus africana
chain, Domestication Guide (ICRAF), Harvest and inventory norms GTZ + CIFOR)
• Actors’ grouping: Prunus Platform, Scientific Group supporting CITES Authority,
• Policy brief: NTFPs in Cameroon & Product sheet: Prunus africana in Cameroon
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Methodology: Cameroon
• Literature review
Lit. review

11. • Responds to CITES 2006 Lima meeting requirements: based
on CITES Secretariat (2006) & Clemente Muñoz et al 2006)
• Innovative for Cameroon and Africa
• Pragmatic national management plan for the sustainable
exploitation of Prunus africana in short & long term
• Culmination of 3 year process based on:
– Scientific evidence
– Regulatory study
– Negotiated policy
– Indigenous knowledge
– Stakeholder participation
• Plan has general consensus from majority of stakeholders.
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12. Research
locations
Bamenda Highlands
West Province
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13. Why use a participatory market chain approach?
• Understand demand & supply, volumes & values
• Map and analyse actors interactions, power relations, governance
arrangements and pressures
• Comprehend institutional and customary and legal framework and
influence and implementation in practice
• Understand livelihood and cultural aspects
• By participating in developing the VC, actors validate , own and
understand chain & issues
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14. INVENTORY
961466 trees surveyed in transects in 4 zones
Results
SCALE OF CULTIVATION GREATER THAN PREVOISULY KNOWN
•Plantations ≥ 100 trees: average age 13 years (exploitable age)
•Approximately 70% of planted trees never harvested
•Nurseries more common in NW
•Majority of plantations small (average 3 hectares)
•≥22,280 trees known in 31 plantations, approximately 24% survive
MORE TREES STANDING THAN PREVIOUSLY BELIEVED
•Current national availability from 4 inventoried zones estimated 1078 tons of wet weight bark annually
•Significant variation in forest exploitation & land use between sites, mainly forest converted to pasture &
agricultural use
REGENERATION
•≥ 1,900,000 trees, multiple sites planted from1976 – 2009, average survival rate 32%, average 10 years old
•2 categories: <30cm diameter = ‘regeneration stock’ and >30cm = ‘exploitation stock’
• Stocks differ widely: human impacts major threat. More smaller trees on Mt Manengouba means less stock
available for exploitation
DENSITY IS LOCATION SPECIFIC
•Stocking densities vary from 15% Mt Cam to 95% Kilum-Ijum total stock 4 zones
•Density varies significantly 1.6 – 11.4 stems/ha & heterogeneous across sites, related to vegetation type
altitude a limiting distribution factor, size differences due to exploitation, human interventions and land use
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15. POST HARVEST BARK REGENERATION STUDY
Results
710 trees at 14 sites in 4 zones: privately owned, permanent forest and Community Forests
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Critical data lacking on tree recovery post harvest & sustainable rotation
period for repeat harvests, seedling regeneration in exploited zones, tree
status & health in plantations and wild at different altitudes.
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Results indicate >60% of harvested P. africana trees over-exploited & 9.2
% well harvested (current harvest good practice).
Bark recovery rates significantly affected by agro-ecological origins.
(Ad=.12 .05; NW=.1 .03; SW=.06 .02cm/yr), indicating humid highlands
in Adamaoua and NW optimal zones.
Bark recovery rates reached 15% of original bark thickness in 1st & 2nd
years after exploitation, & progressively dropped to inflection point (7%)
between 7th & 8th year. A seven year rotation period therefore considered
sustainable for repeated harvesting. Regional adjustment needed.
Harvest from breast height diameter (30 cm) judged sustainable due to
high bark recovering rate (8%/yr) and good mean bark thickness (1.3cm)
upwards to the first branch.
Growth rate faster (14 .5m compared to 9 .2m) at altitude <800m a.s.l.,
however insect attacks (94%) severe <1000m a.s.l.. Optimum zone for
planting = ≥1000 m a.s.l..
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THINKING beyond the canopy

16. PARTICPATORILY DEVELOPING A
NATIONAL MANAGEMENT PLAN
Results
Highlighted:
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High livelihood importance in adjacent NW & SW villages
Weak chain governance: Corrupt officials, unclear regulatory system & enforcement lacking
Breakdown of traditional forest management regimes
Little information exchange & market knowledge - uninformed harvesters & no controls
Unknown resource quantity hindered management with pressures to supply and scares in
international community – but based on little evidence
Available stock only known with PAU inventories/Management Plans + registration private stock
Protected areas harvest ban = conservation genetic stock & for regeneration
Distinction between ‘wild’ & domesticated Prunus africana via Certificate of Origin
Need for a new permit system devised and agreed as sustainable alternative to current system
Consensus on introducing a scientific & practical inventory norm
Conservative harvesting technique and certification agreed
Revised monitoring & control by government and communities agreed
Ongoing research needs consolidated & being addressed
Coordination mechanisms e.g. Prunus Platform & Scientific Authority Group
Awareness raising & education on CITES & regulations started
Need to promote domestication and planting + regeneration program in wild.
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17. BASELINE & HOUSEHOLD VALUE CHAIN STUDY
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Results
Since 1970s Cameroon major exporter, 48% of worldwide
trade since 1995
Average 1700 ton exported annually to international
pharmaceutical and health businesses.
Since 2000 exported to France (53%), Spain (31%) and
Madagascar (11%), and small quantities to Belgium, China,
India and the United States.
Needs of pharmaceutical industry (chemical/genetic
composition) not well understood
Significant (up to 80% 40) proportion of household incomes in 2 main harvest areas from P. africana
98% of harvest sold, 2% own or local consumption
Benefits to approximately 70,000 people, direct income to around 700 (Community forests,
plantation holders, harvesters) & 11 small & medium enterprises
Source of foreign exchange currency for Cameroon with export value ≈ 2,010,000 US$ in 19999
Producer level value annual average trade value (2007) 540,000 US$
Average price = harvesters 0.12-0.5 US$ kg, intermediaries 0.5 – 1 US$
Average export price 1.34 US$ kg, one company dominated market with 50% share
About 25% of harvesters organised and trained in harvesting
Predicted growing demand for prostate medications in Europe & US world indicating long term
potential commerce, given continuation of trade and market retention despite the trade suspension
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18. The reality now.....
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Implementation of the Cameroon Plan now ongoing
(operational plan, harvest norms)
Stakeholders shown openness to participate in formulating policy options
Policy and regulatory extremes and inappropriate legal framework ripe for
rationalisation
Reflecting tree and land tenure is critical for sustainable exploitation & equity
Employment and profitability increased by professionalising sector
Importance of business, infrastructure & technical support
Processing & storage important to add value locally (vertical integration)
Domestication seen by all actors is key to sustainable supply
Farmers generally maintaining stocks ‘ don't know basis’ but no significant
planting occurring since 2008
Sustainable harvest techniques & domestication technologies offer potential
to increase profits – but needs wide scale disseminating and enforcement
NTFP Market Information System and actor Platforms initial positive results
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19. Learning points
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Prunus africana like other NTFP trade in Cameroon is under appreciated &
insufficiently captured in statistics
Governance arrangements have major impact on income equity &
distraction, access, control profit margins,
Level of domestication provides good sustainability indicator for future
Questions about which genetic resources to domesticate – given
pharmaceutical industry preferences
Promoting cultivation will be a decisive factor for long term success
Long lived tree = need to wait for long term conservation & management
results
Power and relationships (lobby and government contacts) important in
determining equity and access to resource
Awareness and enforcement of new policy regime will be critical
Roles of traditional, regulatory and devolved authorities need to be
resolved to clarify management and governance responsibilities
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20. Thank you!
www.cifor.cgiar.org
v.ingram@cgiar.org
The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR)
is one of the 15 centres supported by the Consultative
Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)
THINKING beyond the canopy
THINKING beyond the canopy