The Role of Indigenous Fruit Trees in Sustainable Dryland Agriculture in Eastern Africa - Indigenous Fruit Trees in the Tropics: Domestication, Utilization and Commercialization - page 204

11 The Role of Indigenous Fruit

Trees in Sustainable Dryland
Agriculture in Eastern Africa

Z. T EKLEHAIMANOT

School of the Environment and Natural Resources, University of Wales,
Bangor, UK

11.1 Introduction

The drylands of Eastern Africa, which include arid, semi-arid and dry
subhumid areas, are geographically complex. They are made up of dynamic
ecosystems ranging from the lowlands of Sudan and the mountains of northern
Ethiopia to the inland plains of Uganda, the coastal lands of Kenya and the
offshore islands of Tanzania. They contain a wide variety of species and genetic
diversity and support the largest assemblies of mammals in the world. Drylands
cover 70% of Eastern Africa, making it one of the driest regions in the world.
These drylands have been occupied intensively by humans for thousands of
years and are currently the most densely populated areas in Eastern Africa. The
population of Eastern Africa is well over 120 million and is increasing at the
rate of 3.2% per annum, the highest rate of increase in Africa (IPED, 1994;
UNEP, 1994; Darkoh, 2003).
In the drylands of Eastern Africa trees play a crucial role in tempering the
effects of climate, while also providing shade to facilitate the growth of crops on
farms and of pastures on rangelands, in addition to providing a wide range of
products. Indigenous fruit trees, in particular, play an important nutritional role
as a source of micro-nutrients and vitamins to augment the diets of local people.
The fruits of many of these species are important as a source of income during
the late dry season and early wet season, when stocks of cereal crops are usually
low. Farmers selectively retain indigenous fruit trees when farmlands are
established by clearing natural woodlands. Indigenous fruit trees are also
deliberately maintained on rangelands to provide fodder for livestock and fruit
for livestock herders. For these reasons, indigenous fruit trees constitute a major
component of many of the Eastern Africa dryland agricultural systems and
successfully ensure a food supply under adverse climatic and edaphic
conditions. Despite the importance of indigenous fruit trees, their role in
sustainable dryland agriculture is overlooked and receives little recognition from