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© Kamla-Raj 2010 J Hum Ecol, 30(3):143-158 (2010)
Non-timber Forest Products in Bardiya District of Nepal:
Indigenous Use, Trade and Conservation
1, 3 2 1 1
Yadav Uprety , Emmanuel K Boon , Ram C Poudel , Krishna K Shrestha , Sangeeta
1 2 1
Rajbhandary , Albert Ahenkan and Narendra N Tiwari
1
Ethnobotanical Society of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
2
Department of Human Ecology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
Laarbeeklaan 109, B-1090 Brussels, Belgium
3
Current Address: Canada Research Chair in Aboriginal Forestry, Université du Québec en
Abitibi-Témiscamingue, 445, boulevard de l’Université, Rouyn-Noranda, Québec, J9X 5E4, Canada
E-mail: Yadav.Uprety@uqat.ca
KEYWORDS Traditional Knowledge. Market Information. Medicinal Plants. Potential Species
ABSTRACT This article scopes the status and potential of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in community
forests and the national forest of Bardiya district in western Nepal. The human ecological approach, participatory
rural appraisal, focus group discussions and interviews were used to gather data and information for analysis. The
results of the data analysis indicate that the area harbours a high diversity of potential NTFPs. Altogether, 101 species
and their traditional uses were recorded. The NTFP species are clustered into first, second, third and fourth categories
on the basis of their market value and resource availability. Despite a gradual but systematic socio-cultural transformation
of the local communities, they still possess ample knowledge of plants and their uses. It is observed that the proper
management of the NTFPs could play a vital role in the improvement of people’s livelihood on a sustainable basis.
1. INTRODUCTION many of the poorest people in Nepal. In certain
areas, NTFPs provide up to 50 percent of house-
Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs) are hold income (Edwards 1996). The use of NTFPs
important tools for addressing poverty issues for vary from place to place because of the hetero-
the marginalised, forest dependant communities, geneity of the community and different traditional
by contributing to livelihoods, including food practices by ethnic groups in the country. In
security, income, health and sustainable human recognising this economic value, forest policies
development (FAO 1995; Falconer 1997; Ahenkan of Nepal have recommended sustainable NTFP
and Boon 2008). Globally, an estimated 350 million management for poverty reduction and livelihood
people mostly in developing countries depend improvement by ensuring community partici-
on NTFPs as their primary source of income, food, pation in forest management (GoN 2004).
nutrition, and medicine (Chandrasekharan 1996; 2. PROBLEM STATEMENT, OBJECTIVES
Olsen 1998; UNDP 2004; FAO 2005). These
products play a vital role in sustaining the lives AND GUIDING HYPOTHESIS
of local gatherers, who must increasingly adapt The significance of NTFPs in rural livelihood
to diminishing resources to stay alive. improvement and for subsistence has been
In Nepal, hundreds of plant species are used established by a number of studies at the national
as NTFPs (Rawal 1997; Shrestha et al. 2004) and level in Nepal (Kanel 1999; Shrestha et al. 2003;
have great conservation and economic value Gauli and Hauser 2009), but little is known about
(Gauli and Hauser 2009). These resources are a their collection and marketing dynamics (Bista
key source of income and livelihood assists for and Edward 2006). Tracing the history of NTFPs
Corresponding Author: exploitation reveals an over-harvesting of medi-
Dr. Emmanual K Boon,
Professor of Environmental Management, cinal plants; other items are largely being ignored.
Human Ecology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, The potential uses of many of the NTFPs have
Laarbeeklaan 109, B-1090 Brussels, Belgium not being well-documented in Khata-Katarnia-
Telephone: +32 2 477 42 81, Fax: +32 2 477 49 64, ghat Corridor despite their potential in poverty
E-mail: eboon@vub.ac.be
YADAV UPRETY, EMMANUEL K BOON, RAM C POUDEL ET AL.
144
reduction and livelihood improvement amongst of species-specific information on distribution
the indigenous people. The documentation of and availability, their potential use and market
other uses of NTFPs is essential in the sense that frontiers.
it will provide choices and help the communities
to improve their economic conditions by explor- 4. MATERIALS AND METHODS
ing more market values and potentialities. Thus,
the specific purpose of this paper was to docu- 4.1 Study Location and Characteristics
ment the available NTFPs used by indigenous
people in Bardiya district of Nepal, their status The Khata-Katarniaghat Corridor of the Terai
and contribution towards improving the liveli- Arc-Landscape (TAL) programme in Bardiya
hoods of the local people as well as identification district of Western Nepal was the study area. The
and prioritisation of NTFP species for sustainable TAL is one of the 120 eco-regions of the world
management and identify key management cha- identified by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and
llenges. The study was guided by the assumption jointly managed by the Government of Nepal and
that the area harbours a high diversity of economic WWF Nepal. The TAL encompasses lowland
plants but the population is less aware about the Terai and outer foothills of the Himalayas at 270
potentials of these resources which can signifi- 0
00’ 00’’ N and 80 03’ 00’’ E, extending from the
cantly contribute towards sustainable livelihood Bagmati River in the east to the Mahakali River in
improvement and poverty reduction. the west. This Nepalese part of the TAL covers
14 districts and includes 75% of lowland Terai
3. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK forest and Churiya. The Terai lowland tropical
forest of Nepal is characterised by enormous bio-
The conceptual framework on which this logical wealth of regional and global importance
paper is anchored is the role of NTFPs in improv- (Chaudhary 1998). It was historically the most
ing the livelihoods of the poor in forest fringe diverse of Nepal’s ecosystems, but extensive
communities and sustainable forest management deforestation has greatly reduced the forest area,
(Fig. 1). The principal premise of the paper is that the population of many species and the variety
NTFPs play an important role in meeting the of ecosystems (GoN 2002).
needs of rural communities, especially in the areas Khata-Katarniaghat Corridor is trans-
2
of food, medicine, poverty reduction, sustainable boundary and covers an area of 82.62 km with a
management of forest resources and livelihoods 2
forest area of 31.86 km . The corridor connects
improvement (FAO 1995; Marshall et al. 2005). Bardiya National Park in Nepal with Katarniaghat
Non-timber forest products are integrated Wildlife Sanctuary in India (Fig. 2). TAL progra-
components of the forestry sector and have been mme is being implemented in two Village Develop-
widely recognized as potential resources for ment Committees (VDCs) of Bardiya district which
promoting sustainable livelihoods, conservation has a population of 18,300. Thirteen community
and capacitating development organizations forests in two VDCs and surrounding national
(FAO 1995; Hamilton 2004). They play a crucial forests were studied.
role in the livelihoods of rural people, especially
for those dwelling in the forest and its vicinity 4.2 Data Collection and Analysis
(Edwards 1993). Besides medicinal plants the use
of diverse groups of NTFPs is largely ignored by The study was carried out during March-
the Nepalese community and development orga- August, 2006. Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) and
nizations. At present, medicinal plants are largely Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) following
being over-exploited. It is therefore high time to Martin (1995) were conducted on the use of wild
explore and promote other NTFPs by not exclud- plants with focus on the season of availability,
ing medicinal plants. mode of harvest, status of the plant, personal
Sustainable collection, use and commerciali- and community choices, commercial values, and
zation are the main drivers in the promotion of indigenous conservation approaches. Guidelines
NTFPs for community development, poverty re- for the interviews and group discussions were
duction and livelihood improvement and sus- developed to facilitate the collection of
tainable forest management. This requires scien- information. Altogether five community-level
tific documentation of these resources, the details discussion groups were held in different localities
NON-TIMBER FOREST PRODUCTS OF NEPAL
145
Livelihood Improvement through NTFPs and Forest Conservation
Forest Commercialization Improvement of Livelihoods
Conservation
Identification of suitable Generation of information
plant and animal species Production necessary to secure people’s
livelihoods in:
- Land-use planning (identification
of suitable forest areas; indigenous
Key ecological territories and forest uses
information for Harvesting - Forest laws/regulations
sustainable extraction - Forest management plans
Identification of suitable Clarification of the social dynamics
forest areas/forest types of NTFP extraction with increased
incomes, employment and
Determining ecological marketing opportunities
effects of extraction of Processing
NTFPs
Search for optimal marketing
Establishment of channels and opportunities for
sustainable harvesting NTFPs
levels of NTFPs
Search for more equitable
Improvement of Marketing commercialisation patterns
harvesting methods of
NTFPs
Development of Study the opportunities for captive
integrated management Consumption breeding
models for non-timber Development of optimized
forest products production systems in
human-modified and manmade
vegetation types
Poverty Reduction, Improved Nutrition and Health
Sustainable Human Development
Fig. 1. Livelihood Improvement through NTFPs and Forest Conservation
Source: Adopted from Ros-Tonen M (Ed.) (1999)
YADAV UPRETY, EMMANUEL K BOON, RAM C POUDEL ET AL.
146
Fig. 2. Bardiya District and the Khata-Katarniaghat Corridor
representing an average of eight persons in each botanical studies. These walks also provided an
discussion group. Additional 21 key informants opportunity to valorize the findings of RRA and
like plant collectors, cultivators, traditional heal- PRA, and allowed to gather information about
ers, traders, community heads and district forest the local names of many species. Herbarium
office staffs were purposively selected for inter- specimens were collected for each species and
views (Huntington 2000). Prior informed consent brought back to the lab to facilitate identification
was obtained with the help of community workers using reference collections (Hara and Williams
(Martin 1995) that facilitated interviews and 1979; Hara et al. 1982; Polunin and Stainton 1984;
discussions with the local people. Consent was Press et al. 2000) and expert knowledge. The
granted by the local people for the dissemination voucher specimens were deposited in Tribhuvan
of their traditional knowledge. University Central Herbarium (TUCH) Kirtipur,
Livelihood assessment was done by inves- Kathmandu.
tigating the people’s engagement in activities like 5. RESULTS
collection, harvesting, processing and packaging
of NTFPs in the area, and their overall contri- 5.1 Indigenous Use of NTFPs in the
bution to the local and national economy. The Khata - Katarniaghat Corridor
local and regional market survey was conducted
to know the potential species in trade and their Altogether, 101 species under 48 families and
price. The abundance of the species was deter- 91 genera were identified as NTFPs, which were
mined based on resource mapping with the com- commonly used plants by the local people for
munity and forest study. Key informants were domestic purposes (Appendix I). Well repre-
also requested to walk along the botanical inven- sented families were Leguminosae (11 species),
tory transects and to report different vegetation Gramineae (7), Euphorbiaceae (5), Moraceae (5),
types and useful species. Cunningham (2001) Compositae (5), Anacardiaceae (4), Compretaceae
has stressed the importance of transect walks (4), and Solanaceae (4). Angiosperms were
with key informants in biodiversity and ethno-
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