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Internship Non-Timber Forest Products Internship IT & Communication Volunteers

Internship Non-Timber Forest Products

The assignment

Agriterra, the Dutch organisation for agricultural development cooperation, wishes to explore the potentials of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) for its current and potential client producer organisations, especially those producer organisations having poor/small farmers as their members, who supplement their farm income with NTFP produce/products (i.e. categories 2 and 3 as mentioned below in “stratification of farmers involved in NTFPs”). This could include support to assist smallholders to capture market opportunities: credit, training, support to social organisation (cooperatives), negotiation of mutual-benefit company-community partnerships, market analysis and information systems, certification schemes, value-adding through e.g. processing of NTFPs, etc.

Agriterra

Agriterra is an agri-agency. In other words, it is an organisation for international cooperation that was founded by the civil society organisations of rural areas and the agricultural private sector. In 2003, together with agri-agencies from other western countries, amongst these Canada, Sweden and France, Agriterra founded AgriCord: the alliance of agri-agencies.
AgriCord coordinates the cooperation amongst all agri-agencies. This means that a request coming from a farmer’s organisation is able to reach the agri-agency that specialises in the working area related to that specific request.

Objectives of the assignment

  1. To provide insight in the opportunities for Agriterra (and other agri-agencies within AgriCord) to support producer organisations in NTFP development.
  2. To develop (ingredients of) an NTFP solution (tool/product) to be used by Agriterra (and the agri-agencies) to approach producer organisations.

Activities

  1. To investigate which agri-agency clients are currently working with NTFPs/agro forestry especially as described for categories 2 and 3 under “stratification of farmers” (start with Agriterra clients).
  2. To ask producer organisations already involved in NTFP what kind of support is further needed to improve their performance in the NTFP sector (probably micro projects).
  3. To perform an opportunity analysis in NTFP/agro forestry development support to producer organisations within the mandate of Agriterra and other agri-agencies.
  4. To determine the role of Agriterra and other AgriCord members in this support
  5. To provide a list of potential third parties and their role in this support.

Expected results

  1. List of clients of Agriterra/AgriCord members (potentially) interested in NTFPs and their specific demands.
  2. Tool box/ option box for Agriterra/AgriCord members to pilot with support to (potential) clients in NTFP development.
  3. Indication of the potential role of Agriterra and third parties in this support.

Background information

What are NTFPs?

Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) are defined as “all biological materials, other than timber, which are extracted from forests or agro-forests for human use.” These include bamboo, rattan and other materials for craft making, forest foods and food ingredients, forest fruits, resins, gums, medicinal plants, aromatics and cosmetics, ornamental plants, honey and fodder. NTFPs form the backbone of a subsistence and local commercial economy in many places around the world. In particular, they provide a vital contribution to the daily subsistence of numerous forest-dependent communities. Working with communities towards an optimal use and management of NTFP resources supports their basic livelihoods. It can also provide a strong incentive for involvement in forest and agro-biodiversity conservation.

Importance of NTFPs to rural people and economies

Several million households world-wide depend heavily on NTFPs for subsistence and/or income. Some 80 percent of the population of the developing world use NTFPs for health and nutritional needs. Women from poor households are generally those who rely more on NTFPs for household use and income. At local level, NTFPs also provide raw materials for large scale industrial processing. Some NTFPs are important export commodities. At present, at least 150 NTFPs are significant in terms of international trade, including honey, gum arabic, rattan, bamboo, cork, nuts, mushrooms, resins, essential oils, and plant and animal parts for pharmaceutical products.
NTFPs have also attracted considerable global interest in recent years due to the increasing recognition of their contribution to environmental objectives, including the conservation of biological diversity (www.fao.org/forestry/nwfp/en).

Access to forest resources supports  rural households diversifying their livelihood base and reduce their exposure to risk. Earnings from forest products are often important as a supplement to other income. Very large numbers of households generate some of their income from selling forest products, often when farm production is not enough to provide self-sufficiency year round. Income from forest products is often used to purchase seeds, hire labour for cultivation, or generate working capital for trading activities. For the poorest households (landless and tenants), NTFPs can play a critical role in providing both food and income.

Stratification of farmers involved in NTFPs
NTFP use is shaped by local markets and institutions, resource abundance, and the relative level of development. Farmers involved in NTFPs can be divided into three groups (Ruiz-Pérez et al., 2004 ).

  1. The first group of farmers represent a typical specialised strategy in which cash-oriented households rely on a NTFP as their main source of income. They manage NTFPs almost like crops; grow them in plantations or manage them intensively in the forest. These farmers generally have secure tenure and access to markets, and make a pretty good living. This usually involves the better off farmers.
  2. The second group of farmers represent a typical subsistence strategy in which an NTFP is the main and frequently sole source of cash income for predominantly subsistence livelihoods. Cash income is used to support current consumption. They collect NTFPs from natural forests that are not intensively managed. These farmers tend to be much poorer as compared to the first group. Forest products provide an important safety net for these people.
  3. The third group of farmers represent a typical diversified economic strategy in which the household economy is well integrated into the cash economy and the NTFP provides only a small proportion of total household income. They fall between the first and the second group in terms of the farmers' incomes and revenue and the way they manage their resources. The NTFPs they collect or produce represent a smaller share of farmers' income, but allow for the diversification of household income.

Interested?

Are you interested in this internship? Then send an e-mail with your curriculum vitae and motivation letter to Cees van Rij (vanrij@agriterra.org). You can carry out this internship at the office of Agriterra in Arnhem, the Netherlands.


Information sources

www.ntfp.org 
http://ntfp.inbar.int/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
www.fao.org/forestry/nwfp/en
www.cifor.cgiar.org
www.forestforum.org.uk/tradeg.htm
www.worldagroforestrycentre.org