ALLANBLACIA AND FOREST LANDSCAPE RESTORATION OPPORTUNITIES. Samuel Kofi Nyame IUCN, Ghana Monastery Mount Febe Yaoundé, 23-27/10/2007

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1 ALLANBLACIA AND FOREST LANDSCAPE RESTORATION OPPORTUNITIES. Samuel Kofi Nyame IUCN, Ghana Monastery Mount Febe Yaoundé, 23-27/10/2007

2 Outline of presentation Brief overview of knowledge: Distribution and Description Allanblackia Project in Ghana AB & Biodiversity Conservation - FLR al LS approaches. Key lessons for practical deployment Important gaps where further work needed

3 A. Brief overview of knowledge Description: Family : Clusiaceae - contains ~ 40 genera worldwide, but appears to consist of nine tree species, all restricted to Africa. Genus: Allanblackia : Taxonomy - appears somewhat complex, with some species having numerous synonyms, and the divisions between taxa are indeterminate; - molecular genetic studies are currently underway, though no results are available yet, to help delineate the relationships and boundaries between species. - All members of the genus are apparently dioecious (separate male and female trees), - Tree single stemmed, up to 40 m tall, with whorled branches, long-lived and long-fruiting, and the biggest fruit of all plants in African rainforest (particularly A. stuhlmannii)

4 Distribution Allanblackia species are mainly distributed in the wet evergreen rainforest (and, sometimes, surrounding farmland) of the lowlands of Sierra Leone, along the Gulf of Guinea, through the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to the uplands of the Eastern Arc Mountains of Tanzania.

5 Names and distributions of the nine species of Allanblackia Species Distribution Status of species (IUCN) A. floribunda Nigeria - DRC Not listed A. gabonensis Cameroon, Gabon VU, habitat loss & degrad. A kimbilensis DRC (Kivu), Uganda Not listed A. kisonghi DRC Not listed A. marienii DRC Not listed A. parviflora Sierra Leone-Ghana Not listed A. stanerana Angola, Cameroon, DRC Not listed A. stuhlmannii Tanzania (Eastern Arc) VU, habitat loss & degrad. A. ulugurensis Tanzania (Eastern Arc) VU, habitat loss & degrad.

6 IUCN - AB project in Ghana Allanblackia: standard setting and sustainable supply chain management project Funded by SECO and implemented by IUCN through its members and partners. Launched in Ghana in March 2005 with an initial duration of three years.

7 Project sites

8 Objectives of project Development objective - is to promote sustainable development and trade in Allanblackia oil as a contribution towards national economic development, by diversifying income sources to improve the livelihood of poor rural communities and by fostering sustainable biodiversity conservation and management in Ghana.

9 Objectives of project cont d. Specific objective - is to promote the instruments (Best Practice Guidelines) that will ensure sustainable harvesting of Allanblackia as well as equitable sharing of benefits amongst the various stakeholders.

10 Expected outputs of Project Best-practice guidelines for Allanblackia harvesting are adopted by industry and collectors, Biological and socio-economic baselines are established, Institutional and legal aspects regarding Allanblackia harvesting are clarified; and Allanblackia supply chain is managed in a way that is environmentally sustainable, socially equitable and economically viable, with primary producers trained in good practice harvesting methods

11 Expected outcome or benefits Long term: Ghanaians will take over the market Reduced poverty in pilot field sites, Increased export earnings and improved national-level economic development, Functioning small- and medium-scale businesses along the supply chain; and Improved forest quality and cover through protection and restoration of forests with native species

12 Expected outcome or benefits Short Term: Development of good-practice guidelines. Impact of wild picking of Allanblackia on biodiversity and on local socio-economic conditions will have been determined. Small- and medium-sized enterprises have new skills on running their businesses, which will help them to operate independently in Allanblackia markets when the project ends. Local public in Ghana as well as global public internationally aware of the Allanblackia public-private partnership and its implications for forest conservation.

13 Partners in the project Implementing Partners The Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) The Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA) Technoserve (TNS)- Intercooperation (IC) Collaborators Novella Development Ghana SNV Ghana ITSC

14 Allanblackia and biodiversity conservation- A forest landscape Restoration Approach What is the relationship between AB and biodiversity? Sustainable wild-harvesting will lead to more equitable benefits sharing from the forest resource. Allanblackia will provide an increased incentive to maintain and enhance the integrity of the resource (especially if buyers demand good practice), Smallholder productions of Allanblackia can help enhance the integrity of forest landscapes and Allanblackia incorporated into farming systems contributing to improved landscape connectivity

15 Forest Landscape Restoration A process that brings people together to identify, negotiate and put in place practices that restore an optimal balance of environmental, social and economic benefits from forests and trees within a broader pattern of land uses

16 What is FLR? Focuses on restoring forest functionality Landscape context. Site-based decisions within a landscape context. Local stakeholder involvement in planning management options Double-filter Trade-offs Adaptive management learning process No single-solution approaches but a package of tools Requires supportive local and national policy frameworks over the long term Can be applied not only to primary forests, but also to secondary forests, forest lands and agricultural land

17 Elements of landscape functionality Stability: Ability to retain key defining features while adapting to changing environmental, social and economic conditions Functional flexibility: Ability to respond to varying livelihood needs, demands and changing priorities and values Ecosystem integrity: Ability to protect biodiversity and nature

18 FLR & AB Allanblackia provides a unique opportunity to use a native tree species, with environmental and economic benefits, to restore degraded forest lands in Ghana and other African countries that have experienced a period of exotic species plantations resulting in negative consequences for local biodiversity and livelihoods.

19 FLR & AB cont d. How? AB tree has thick bark for reducing risks of farm fires during the dry season since the tree keeps the ground moist) and thus adds to its positive qualities for restoration. Allanblackia casts only minimal shade with its narrow crown and is sometimes hard to remove because it sprouts easily. Smallholder productions of Allanblackia can help enhance the integrity of forest landscapes, Incorporating Allanblackia into farming systems will contribute to improved landscape connectivity.

20 Risks of using AB in FLR to biodiversity Possibility of over-harvesting seed sources which may impact regeneration, Evolution of Allanblackia into a plantation tree (contrary to Novella Project objectives). Habitat disturbance issues linked to seed collection. These risks can be reduced through careful management and by promoting legislation that favours the sustainable use of Allanblackia and enhances livelihood security and forest governance.

21 What is Ghana doing? Promoting the planting of trees including AB on farms in agroforestry systems Promoting AB in Government Afforestation programmes Supply 200 AB planting materials each to the five project sites Supply AB planting materials (about 6,000) to P bease/sureso CREMA Promoting the inclusion of AB in other CREMAs

22 What is the situation in Tanzania Any sharing of experiences and intentions

23 Lessons Learnt Local communities abilities should be enhanced to benefit from the forests, through initiatives such as the AB / Novella initiatives. Legislation that favours the sustainable use of AB and other natural resources, and that enhance livelihood security and forest governance should be promoted. Species that are dependent on Allanblackia fruit and seed should be monitored and if necessary promoted Paths used for wild (forest) harvesting should avoid parts of the ecosystem that are considered of particularly high value

24 Lessons Learnt cont d. Impacts (positive and negative) on other species (including animals) should be considered before introducing the tree into new areas. Natural and artificial Allanblackia regeneration should be promoted to compensate for the inevitable decline resulting from the loss of seed input from the ecosystem. Harvesting guidelines are not easy for local communities to comprehend, and need to be simplified and translated into local languages.

25 Some Important gaps where further work needed Research into cocoa AB interactions (positive & negative) on each other. Impact of AB collection on animal species dependent on AB and vice versa Research into cocoa farming that examines the integration of shade trees into cocoa plantations from a landscape restoration perspective Allanblackia as one of a number of forest products that can be integrated into cocoa and other tree crop plantations. Diseases, pests or parasites that AB is prone to and its resistance to these and other stress factors in the wild, on farmlands and in smallholder plantations.

26 Landscape scenarios Akyekyere Community in thé Wassa Amenfi East District Of Ghana