Abstract
The social, economic, and ecological role of woodlands forests in dry and lowland areas are more imperative than anywhere else. Most of the dry lands of Ethiopia host woodlands that produce various commercial gum-resin products. The objective of this study was to investigate the social and economic importance of commercial gum-resin products focusing on their roles in the local livelihoods. Four kebeles, namely, Luka and Enchete from Bena-Tsemay district, and Erbore and Asele from Hamer district of South Omo Zone, were purposively selected for the collection of socioeconomic data. Semistructured questionnaire and checklists were used for households and key informant interviews and focus group discussions, respectively. In addition, market assessments and field observation were conducted to collect the primary data and supplemented with secondary data. A total of 80 households were randomly selected for one-to-one interviews from the total number of 425 households in the selected kebeles. A total of 10 key informant interviews with elders, forestry experts, local merchants, and enterprise members involved in gum-resins marketing and 4 focus group discussions with 12 members including men, women, and youth were conducted. Simple descriptive statistical tools were used for the data analysis. The results of the study showed that the mean annual income earned from the sale of gum-resins was 5670 and 4571 ETB per household at Bena-Tsemay and Hamer study sites, respectively. About 84% of the respondents indicated that gum-resin collection was the simplest and fastest means to earn income for school children and women. Gum and resin collection was the third most important livelihood option in the study area following animal husbandry and crop and honey production. The majority (84%) of respondents recognized the income made from gum-resin products as a safety net during recurring famine eras. Moreover, respondents recognized the benefit of gum arabic as food during famine time, as chewing gum, and as nutritious fodder. It was also used as folk medicine for both human and livestock diseases. Communities used this resource as a constituent to treat eye and skin infections, bleeding, wounds, ulcers, stomachache, gastrointestinal infections, etc. In addition, 88.33% of shrubs/trees were used as source of cash income for local communities and 11.67% as fodder for animal husbandry. Despite this significance, various constraints hindered the utilization of the resource in the study area, and these included lack of appropriate tapping techniques, market access, market information, cooperatives, infrastructure facilities, and appropriate institutions as well as poor local communities’ awareness of land management. The present investigation has provided valuable information for overcoming the major constraints by devising strategies to maximize gum-resin production and commercialization in the study area.
Highlights
Woodlands and forest’s social, economic, and biological role in both dry and lowland areas are more imperative than in any rangelands
Majority of the respondents (60%) of pastoralists were illiterate and unable to read and write, and only 7.5% completed formal education. e result obtained in this study was in line with the previous studies done by [17, 22] in Hamer and Bena-Tsemay, South Omo, respectively, but unlike those in Mexico, Kenya, and Kwara State (Nigeria), as reported by different authors [23,24,25], where most of the people had elementary education. e high level of illiteracy was attributed to the lack of participation in learning, as most of the time was spent in rearing livestock
E first livelihood option for the local communities has been animal rearing, and it is the largest income source (33.75%). e result obtained in the current study validated what has been reported by different authors in different pastoral areas of Ethiopia [26,27,28]
Summary
Woodlands and forest’s social, economic, and biological role in both dry and lowland areas are more imperative than in any rangelands. Agroforestry parklands and trees/shrubs outside forests play decisive roles in the livelihood of societies in Africa’s woodlands [1]. For Ethiopia, there are many social, economic, ecological, and political details to enact sustainable management of its woodland forests. Discussion on the significance of woodlands and dry forests is highly dependent on lessons from the moist tropics, with scanty information on woodlands that cover large areas and host hundreds of millions of Africans [1, 3, 4]. Current studies reveal that development towards combination of woodland forests has been hindered partly by a lack of practically based information on their socioeconomic significance [1, 5]
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