Forest Products, Livelihoods and Conservation

Atilade Akanmu Adebisi 127

In the J4 area, individual households have particular bitter kola trees from

which they harvest without hindrance. The number of trees could be increased

by planting Garcinia kola wildlings. This has just begun in the last 10 years,

when forest inhabitants learned that the tree could be cultivated.

There are indications that there is an accelerated decline in the abundance

of Garcinia kola trees and other NTFPs in the tropical rainforest of Africa,

most especially those that are of socio-economic importance and have long

been commercialised. Deforestation and various processes of clearing

vegetation have changed habitats, in part as a result of changes in climatic

conditions in the past five decades. This, coupled with various intensities of

exploitation by stakeholders, has been held responsible for the decline in the

abundance of some major NTFPs. The lack of modern, efficient and appropriate

processing technologies has contributed to the underutilisation of many NTFPs—

and caused great economic loss. The impact of this lack of processing technology

is considered to have limited the trade of many NTFPs to domestic markets.

For example, trade in bitter kola is still within the domain of domestic and

national markets, though regional and international markets are known to

exist (although the volume of trade is yet to be ascertained). Furthermore the

government of Nigeria has not promoted the production and trade of bitter

kola like it has its counterpart, the cola nut, which in the past six decades has

been variously favoured and developed to the extent that Nigeria is now one

of the biggest producers and exporters of cola nuts. Increasing the production

of bitter kola may expand its trade, market stability and add more economic

value. The government, multilateral, nongovernmental and private

organisations and industrial entrepreneurs should sponsor various programmes

and projects to study and support the development of bitter kola. Such efforts

could accomplish the desired development in cultivation and improve the

tree’s slow growth rate, industrial use and overseas promotion of bitter kola

trade.

KEY ISSUES/PROBLEMS

Decline in forest cover

Nigerian forest covers a total land area of 360,000 km^2 (Bada 1984), 27% of

which makes up the forest reserves of the country. The remaining forest cover

is regarded as free areas, and it is from these areas that most of the wood

requirements of the country have been met. However, as economically valuable

species were cleared from the free areas, the forest reserves were exploited.

Nigerian forest area has declined greatly because of uncontrolled deforestation.

Although efforts are being made to plant fast growing exotic and indigenous

species to replace the overexploited tropical forest, the rate of establishment

does not match the rate of exploitation. By 1990, plantations of various species

and purposes covering a total of 216,026 ha had been established in various

parts of Nigeria, particularly in the forest reserve areas (Omoluabi et al. 1990).

It is feared that unless something is done, the remaining pockets of tropical

forest in Nigeria may have vanished by the end of the twenty-first century

(Okojie et al. 1988).

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