Sociocultural uses of Borassus aethiopum Mart and Hyphaene thebaica (L.) Mart in the agroforestry parks of the Gaya department (Niger, West Africa)

Abstract

Plant biodiversity is an important resource that provides a wide range of ecosystem services to local communities. Contributing to local knowledge about their roles in the sociocultural well-being of households will enable greater involvement of local communities in environmental protection through the rational and more sustainable management of natural resources. The aim of this study was to determine the contribution of B. aethiopum and H. thebaica agroforestry parklands in the households’ socio-cultural activities of Gaya. It was carried out in five villages of study area through surveys of local residents and some responsibles for managing the forest stands. Overall, the results showed that, respondents used all B. aethiopum organs and fruits, leaves and wood only of H. thebaica. Better still, B. aethiopum fruits (24.94%) against H. thebaica leaves (8.08%) were the most used. They also revealed eight fields but trade was the most cited with 17.70% for B. aethiopum against 7.87% for H. thebaica. The logistic regression model showed that ethnicity, gender, business and household size increased the likelihood of Hyphaene thebaica organs exploitation against animal feed with Borassus aethiopum.
This study will enable to develop policies for the protection, conservation and dissemination of these species in their natural environment