By Mutizwa Mukute
Along the lakeshore of Malawi, beautiful indigenous trees grow, right at the entrance of the Mangocha Hotel reception. These have been carefully protected from exploitation.
A few hundred kilometres away, in Lilongwe, Susan Minae, a scientist who works to encourage the planting of indigenous trees in agroforestry, says: “We are trying to integrate fruits in farmers’ fields.” She works with women, men and children in rural areas.
Susan believes women have a crucial role to play in agroforestry: “I get annoyed with survey takers who return and say the farmer wasn’t home — only his wife.” Across southern Africa, the role of women in this and in development in general is assuming importance by the day. Meanwhile, the beauty and benefits of indigenous trees is gaining recognition among decision-makers in the region.
Southern Africa is endowed not only with beautiful trees — it has 80 indigenous varieties of fruit trees. These include the baobab, the marula and wild loquat trees. The plants are rich in vitamins, protein and calcium. Other plants such as the pepper-bark tree are good as medicine. Growing such trees on a large-scale has the potential to benefit society tremendously.
In view of the important role indigenous trees can play, especially in rural areas, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has embarked on a tree-seed development programme funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
The SADC Forestry Sector in Malawi, through the SADC Tree Seed Centre Network, seeks to: “achieve a sufficient and sustainable supply of high-quality tree-seeds of a diversity of species … through the strengthening of national tree-seed centres and the formation of a network.”
The project is implemented in conjunction with the SADC Plant Genetic Centre in Zambia and national plant genetic committees in SADC countries. The project has sponsored seed specialists to attend courses in the region — at the Sokoine University in Tanzania, the Forestry College in Zimbabwe and through visits to established plant genetic centres in the region. Others have been sent abroad to Canada, UK and US for short courses.
Jean Brouard, ‘the manager of the Seed Centre, acknowledges that interest in indigenous trees is not a new idea in southern Africa. Some foresters in the region have been studying the growth potential of indigenous species.
In Zimbabwe, the weeping wattle, winterberry, and winter acacia are among those already on the market. South Africa and Zimbabwe have healer associations that grow medicinally important trees.
However, research on the indigenous trees has not been enough because demand for the trees has been low. The seed project is therefore a welcome addition. The project is outstanding in its involvement of women in the region. “Women have a lot to offer at all levels. And I have a strong feeling that they have to be involved. I am happy SADC countries have been promoting the role of women in forestry, which is traditionally dominated by men,” says Brouard.
“The seed project’s policy is to have 50 percent ratio of men to women at all levels of the organisation,” he added.
As to the impact of the project so far, he said: “Apart from training many women (and men) on both long and short courses on seed-breeding and gender-sensitisation, results are yet to trickle down to the grassroots.” “But what we are doing is to assist locals in developing the right expertise to breed indigenous trees that will be easy to grow.” (SARDC)
