36 Dental hygiene and livelihoods: a case of chewing sticks in Ghana
more recently even small logs are harvested since most gatherers are not
from the areas they operate within and therefore rarely return to the same
forest. In contrast with non-indigenous gatherers, locals allow time for smaller
diameter trees to develop since most of these local communities are dependent
on the gathering of chewing sticks. Thus the value of the trade in itself does
not provide incentives for degradation of the resource base. The resource
base has been degraded because of the lack of appropriate policies and
management. There is an urgent need to develop a sustainable resource
base through the adoption of sound management practices based on scientific
data. To achieve that goal, the following information is needed: current level
of Garcinia spp. stocking and rate of exploitation. This knowledge should
lead to a standardisation of amounts extracted. Current efforts to establish
plantations of Garcinia spp. need to be increased.ENDNOTES- Forestry Research Institute of Ghana University, Box 63 Kumasi, Ghana.
E-mail: [email protected]
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