Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 1.7.
The 15 top species in each of the four Sahelian countries, ranked according to the
proportion of respondents mentioning the species as important.
Rank in country
Species
Burkina Faso
Mali
Niger
Senegal
Acacia macrostachya
14
Acacia nilotica
14
Adansonia digitata
5
2
1
1
Azadirachta indica
10
Balanites aegyptiaca
8
11
2
6
Bombax costatum
6
Borassus aethiopum
10
6
Combretum nigricans
13
Cordyla pinnata
9
2
Detarium microcarpum
11
14
15
9
Diospyros mespiliformis
10
3
Faidherbia albida
7
6
10
3
Ficus gnaphalocarpa
15
13
Ficus iteophylla
8
Hyphaene thebaica
9
Khaya senegalensis
8
14
Landolphia senegalensis
15
Lannea microcarpa
3
5
Parinari macrophylla
8
12
Parkia biglobosa
2
3
12
7
Pterocarpus erinaceus
13
Saba senegalensis
13
Sclerocarya birrea
12
7
Sterculia setigera
11
Tamarindus indica
4
4
11
4
Vitellaria paradoxa
1
1
4
Vitex doniana
5
Ziziphus mauritiana
9
12
7
5
Source: ICRAF (1996).
priority species were important because of their edible fruits. Two also provided
leaves as food (Sidibé
et al
., 1996). On average, 39% of the interviewees were
women and they expressed different preferences from those of the men. Men
ranked
Balanites aegyptiaca
and
Faidherbia albida
very highly, whereas women
consistently ranked baobab as the most valuable species. Men however, were
not a homogeneous group, and older and younger men showed differences in
preferences for species such as tamarind and
Ziziphus mauritiana
.
Some of the most threatened species in the region, including
Bauhinia
rufescens
and
Prosopiis africana
were not included in the top 15 species in any
of the countries, even though they are important fodder species. Work on
species that really need to be conserved will have to be carefully balanced
against work on those with more immediate prospects for improvement
because of farmer-led demand for food species.
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