Allanblackia Integrated Domestication Strategy West and Central Africa

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Allanblackia Integrated Domestication
StrategyWest and Central Africa

• Asaah ICRAF-WCA/HT
• BP 16317 Yaounde, Cameroon
• Tel [phone] Fax [phone]
• Email e.asaah_at_cgiar.org

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Topics for discussion

• Background
• Main Components of Domestication
• Allanblackia Domestigram
• Partnerships
• Management and Coordination
• Lessons Learnt
• Development of a national strategy

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Background

• Of the 9 recorded species of Allanblackia, 4
  occur in this region
• 3 occur in Cameroon
• A. floribunda (Nigeria),
• A. gabonensis and
• A. stanerana
• A. parviflora (Ghana).

Fruiting A. floribunda tree
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Main Components of Domestication

• Some specificity of agroforestry trees for
  domestication - Allanblackia
• Species  with  threatened  habitats  and
   populations  
• Limited  knowledge on propagation  
• Limited  knowledge on management  
• Incomplete  knowledge on nutritional qualities  
• No formal varieties  
• Traditional use based on wild harvest  
• Timid  promotional campaigns 
• Limited product development
• Limited market  information systems

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• Review and collation of available literature on
  Allanblackia species.
• Determination of natural distribution and zones
  of abundance of each species.
• Development of germplasm collection and
  conservation strategies.
• Assessment of genetic diversity through
  molecular, biophysical chemical
  characterisation studies.
• Development of suitable clonal propagation
  methods.
• Determine integration/diversification requirement
  of the species.
• Training and technical backstopping of
  stakeholders in the Allanblackia domestication
  initiative.

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Allanblackia Domestigram
CS of propagator
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Partnerships

• ICRAF-WCA
• Farmer Groups
• CBOs
• NGOs
• NARS
• Universities
• Private sectors
• In Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon

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Key elements in partnerships

• Partners should be strategic
• On technical, policy and NRM domains.
• Partnership appraisal
• to assess how partners fit into the strategy and
  what mutual and complementary benefits could
  arise from such partnerships.
• Definition of specific roles and potential
  contributions of partners
• e.g. Allanblackia domestication initiative

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Partners Roles and Responsibilities..1
Farmer Groups CBOs Indigenous knowledge, Seed collection, Propagate and plant Allanblackia
NGOs Facilitates stakeholder collaboration, Production distribution germplasm for incorporation into farming systems, Promote best practices for sustainable wild harvesting biodiversity conservation Promote development investment opportunities to create additional income at producer level
NARS Development of propagation techniques, Development of agroforestry systems Conduct ecological studies to establish the abundance and a baseline for sustainable harvesting Extension of best practices of Allanblackia domestication
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Universities and Research Institutions Development of propagation techniques Development of Allanblackia cultivars Development of agroforestry systems
Private sector Facilitates the development of marketing networks and supply chain Facilitates resource mobilization for Allanblackia domestication initiative
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Co-ordination and Management

• Proper co-ordination and management is important
  to leverage the benefits from such synergies with
  multiple partners.
• ICRAF Cameroon Novella projects in, Ghana and
  Nigeria are facilitators of the Allanblackia
  domestication initiative in west and central
  Africa.
• However, ownership and sustainability of the
  programme in Cameroon, Ghana and Nigeria is
  ensured by NARS staff seconded to support the
  programme implementation.

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• Organize stakeholders annual planning and
  evaluation meetings aimed at developing
• an integrated strategy for sustainable
  extraction,commercialization of Allanblackia
  seeds from natural stands in the short term, and
• production of quality germplasm of Allanblackia
  for integration into farming systems in the long
  term.

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• Outcomes of planning meetings include
• Specific roles and contributions of partners in
  the implementation of the Allanblackia
  domestication initiative established
• Key stakeholders evaluate past activities and
  orientate future work as required.
• Partners and stakeholders present and consolidate
  yearly work plans and budgets.
• Elements for writing of yearly progress reports
  derived, gaps for further research identified and
  directions for further orientation of the
  domestication initiative and resource
  mobilisation strategies defined.

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Organise technical backstopping

• Crucial for partners in the different countries
  playing a prominent role in empowering
  communities and farmer groups on Allanblackia
  domestication.
• Partners have to develop pilots in villages which
  will constitute future Allanblackia knowledge
  (Resource) centers in communities for
  dissemination of best practices of Allanblackia
  domestication

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• Allanblackia knowledge centers are being
  developed in Cameroon with partners who
  participated in germplasm collection, production,
  biophysical characterization,
• Nigeria with partners who participated in a
  national tree domestication training course with
  emphasis on Allanblackia in July 2006.
• Tanzania following an Allanblackia domestication
  training course organized in July 2006 and
• Later in Ghana after similar plan training course.

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Highlights of Training in Tanzania
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Structure of Knowledge Center

• 10 non mist propagators, germination beds,
• quality seeds/seedlings of AB and a number of
  priority species,
• stock plants plots established of AB and other
  priority species,
• at least 10 selected female trees cut down for
  mass multiplication through vegetative
  propagation,
• plants of AB and other priority species produced
  by sexual or vegetative propagation techniques,
• demonstration plots of AB integrated with other
  priority species and
• training materials on (nursery techniques,
  propagation methods, guidelines for tree
  integration and management etc..).

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Integration models for Allanblackia

• Allanblackia is not isolated but integrated in
  the domestication process of working trees
  (fruits, medicinal, culinary, fodder, fuel wood,
  timber) on working landscapes (agricultural and
  degraded forest landscapes).
• Preliminary work done in Cameroon on Allanblackia
  integration under partial shade in secondary
  forest and under direct sunlight indicates that
  Allanblackia seedlings will required partial
  shade just like other local fruit trees.

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• Models for Integration in mixed agroforestry
  systems
• 1 farm 1,000,000 AB trees
• 100 farms 10, 000 AB trees each
• 500 farms 2,000 AB trees each
• 1,000 farms 1,000 AB trees each
• 5,000 farms 200 AB trees each
• 10,000 farms 100 AB trees each
• 100,000 farms 10 AB tree each

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Lesson learnt and gaps

1. An integrated domestication strategy to guide the
   Allanblackia domestication initiative has been
   developed and is in place. Various components of
   the strategy e.g. development of suitable
   propagation methods, characterization studies and
   integration models are being implemented at
   varying levels in Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria and
   Tanzania.

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• 2. Biophysical characterization methods have been
  developed, and descriptors for the predication of
  nut traits from fruit traits (fruit sizehigh
  number of nuts) identified. These results will
  gradually be applied in the selection of mother
  trees for germplsam and fruit collection in the
  different countries.

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• 3. Solid and strategic partnerships developed,
  however, there should be a clear definition of
  roles and responsibilities among and between
  partners in the Allanblackia domestication
  initiative.
• The need to facilitate the creation of
  Allanblackia knowledge centers in communities
  that will play the key role of dissemination of
  knowledge on best practices of Allanblackia
  domestication.
• Develop a sustainable funding mechanism for
  Allanblackia domestication initiative.

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Development of a national strategy specific to
Cameroon

• Since domestication is a farmer driven and market
  led process, it is important that mechanisms to
  put in place to establish a supply chain for
  Allanblackia seeds in Cameroon.
• In the absence of an alternative wide scale local
  use for the seeds, the non-existence of the
  supply chain is a disincentive for Allanblackia
  cultivation in Cameroon and all awareness efforts
  on the species might not make a difference in the
  eyes of farmers.