Abstract
BackgroundAgrobiodiversity is said to contribute to the sustainability of agricultural systems and food security. However, how this is achieved especially in smallholder farming systems in arid and semi-arid areas is rarely documented. In this study, we explored two contrasting regions in Benin to investigate how agroecological and socioeconomic contexts shape the diversity and utilization of edible plants in these regions.MethodsData were collected through focus group discussions in 12 villages with four in Bassila (semi-arid Sudano-Guinean region) and eight in Boukoumbé (arid Sudanian region). Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 180 farmers (90 in each region). Species richness and Shannon-Wiener diversity index were estimated based on presence-absence data obtained from the focus group discussions using species accumulation curves.ResultsOur results indicated that 115 species belonging to 48 families and 92 genera were used to address food security. Overall, wild species represent 61% of edible plants collected (60% in the semi-arid area and 54% in the arid area). About 25% of wild edible plants were under domestication. Edible species richness and diversity in the semi-arid area were significantly higher than in the arid area. However, farmers in the arid area have developed advanced resource-conserving practices compared to their counterparts in the semi-arid area where slash-and-burn cultivation is still ongoing, resulting in natural resources degradation and loss of biodiversity. There is no significant difference between the two areas for cultivated species richness. The interplay of socio-cultural attributes and agroecological conditions explains the diversity of food plants selected by communities.ConclusionsWe conclude that if food security has to be addressed, the production and consumption policies must be re-oriented toward the recognition of the place of wild edible plants. For this to happen we suggest a number of policy and strategic decisions as well as research and development actions such as a thorough documentation of wild edible plants and their contribution to household diet, promotion of the ‘’bringing into cultivation” practices, strengthening of livestock-crop integration.
Highlights
Agrobiodiversity is said to contribute to the sustainability of agricultural systems and food security
The number of wild edible plants used in the two municipalities represents 43% of the total number of non-wood edible forest plant resources collected during a country-wide market survey in Benin [52] and is lower than the diversity of noncultivated plant species (87 species) collected in the southwest Benin and the southeast Togo [53]
Our results indicate that in dry areas wild plants still constitute an important asset in addressing food security by ensuring the availability and accessibility of food plants
Summary
Agrobiodiversity is said to contribute to the sustainability of agricultural systems and food security. The strong climatic variations and irregular rainfalls that characterized agro-ecosystems in dry areas make harvest of staple and cash crops highly uncertain, especially in West African Sahel and dry savannas [11] These constraints are expected to intensify as a result of population growth, urbanization and climate change, which will likely exacerbate food insecurity in these areas, that are already vulnerable to hunger and under-nutrition [12]. In this context, increased knowledge of the functionalities of agrobiodiversity will help build the social and natural science evidence-base to allow formulation of adequate intensification strategies [13]. These context- and location-specific strategies require a clear understanding of food production and consumption systems
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