Evaluating the Potential Contribution of Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs) to Smallholder Farmers in Semi-arid and Arid Regions: A case of Chivi, Zimbabwe

Food insecurity in most dry regions in Zimbabwe has taught many people a lesson of using non timber forest products (NTFPs) to reduce food insecurity and improve livelihoods as well as poverty alleviation. The aim of the study was to evaluate the potential contribution of non-timber forest products to smallholder farmers in arid and semi-arid regions. The research was carried out as a survey and data was collected using interviews, questionnaires and focus group discussion. Data was analysed for descriptive statistics using IBM SPSS version 25. Results indicated that 64 % were females and 36 % were males with the majority of participants being married (57.6 %) with only 8.8 % being widowed. Results show that all respondents (100%) indicated that they obtain fruits from the forests as a major source of food during winter and rain season. Vegetables (84.2 %), thatching grass (80.8%) and edible worms (62.5 %) were also major non-timber forest products obtained from the forests by participants. All participants (100%) indicated that income generation, firewood and source of heat for brick moulding were major benefits they obtain from forest with vegetables (74.2 %), brooms (91.7 %) and improved nutrition (85.0 %) being regarded as other important benefits enjoyed by local people from forests. Afforestation and reforestation were regarded as major sustainable forest management practices by all (100%) participants with agroforestry being indicated by only 12.5 % since people had no knowledge about it. NTFPs has capacity of improving food security, human livelihoods and alleviate poverty. People are encouraged to harvest NTFPs sustainably to allow future use. Use of agroforestry can be a best way for managing forests sustainably, improve food security, crop yield, poverty alleviation and climate change mitigation

Integrated soil fertility management practices for improved crop production in smallholder farming systems of semi-arid areas: A synthetic review

AbstractSoil fertility degradation is one of the major constraints in smallholder farming environments especially in the semi-arid region of Sub-Saharan Africa. This has been worsened by poor farming methods, lack of technical knowledge and inadequate application of nutrient sources by farmers. The use of mineral fertiliser alone has been cost ineffective and causes land degradation. Although several soil fertility management (SFM) practices have been put forward, knowledge about their benefits, access and adoption by smallholder farmers is still limited. Synthetic review of published articles obtained from Web of Science, Google Scholar and Scopus which cover semi-arid regions across Africa were retrieved and synthesied. Farmers have been applying low organic manure (<5 t ha−1) against the recommended rate of 20–40 t ha−1 depending on soil texture and this caused low crop yields. This call for farmers to adopt integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) practices to improve nutrient availability and crop yields. The use of ISFM has been reported to increase maize yields by 15–145% in semi-arid areas. Maize yields varies from 4200 to 5500 kg ha−1 and sorghum from 690 to 3500 kg ha−1 under ISFM. Yield increment for various crops with the use of cattle manure integrated with other nutrient sources was reported but there are still few studies where effects compost, farmyard manure and poultry manure were combined with inorganic fertiliser were evaluated. Therefore, this review paper seeks to synthesise the effects of ISFM practices available for smallholder farming systems in semi-arid areas of sub-Saharan Africa to improve crop production

UTILISATION AND CONTRIBUTION OF FOREST RESOURCES TO IMPROVE FOOD SECURITY IN DRY REGIONS OF AFRICA

The unsustainable harvest of forest resources in dry regions of Africa has contributed to forest degradation and increased the prices of forest resources in local markets. Many people in dry regions, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, have been harvesting forest resources to supplement food sources due to poor crop production as a result of erratic rainfall. This review seeks to explore the utilisation and contribution of forest resources to improving food security in the dry regions of Africa. Forest resources are highly utilised by poor resource farmers in rural areas as a means of poverty alleviation, income generation and to improve human livelihoods. Resources such as non-timber forest products (NTFPs) contribute to human nutrition, income generation, food sources and to improve living standards. NTFPs, such as honey, waxes and medicines, have been reported to contribute income in countries, such as Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, creating more opportunities for rural people to improve their living standards and reduce food insecurity. These resources contribute to hidden hunger though the utilisation of fruit, vegetables, honey, wild meat and edible worms, especially to the children under five years of age. Climate change has also created variability in the availability of forest resources in dry regions, and this has altered their contribution to human livelihoods and food security