Coffee Agroforestry and the Food and Nutrition Security of Small Farmers of South-Western Ethiopia

Agroforestry generally contributes to rural food and nutrition security (FNS). However, specialization on commodity-oriented agroforestry practices or management strategies can weaken local food sourcing when terms of trade fluctuate, as is the case of coffee in Ethiopia. Hence, this study assessed the trade-offs that smallholder farming households in south-western Ethiopia face between growing coffee in agroforestry systems and their food and nutrition security based on home production as well as markets. Data collected from 300 randomly selected households included: (i) attributes of agroforestry practices (AFP) and plants: structure, use type, edibility, marketability, nutritional traits, and (ii) the householders' FNS attributes: food security status, nutritional adequacy, and nutritional status. Data were collected both in food surplus and shortage seasons, during and after coffee harvesting. Within these data, the number of plant species and vegetation stories were significantly correlated with household food access security in both seasons and for all AFP identified, i.e., homegarden, multistorey-coffee-system, and multipurpose-trees-on-farmlands. The number of stories in homegardens and the richness of exotic species in multipurpose-trees-on-farmlands were significantly correlated with the biometric development of children below 5 years old during the shortage season. The richness of “actively-marketed” species in all AFP correlated with the food access security of the household, except in the multistorey-coffee-system, oriented to coffee production. Also, families that cultivate all three AFP showed significantly higher household diversity dietary during the shortage season. We conclude that no single AFP can secure FNS status of the households by itself, but the combination of all three can. Household and individual dietary scores were positively correlated with the AFP diversity-attributes, especially in the shortage season. Thus, the diversity of useful groups of plant species deserves to be promoted for instance by enriching AFP with edible and storable crops needed during the shortage season.

BARODAK RAPANCAR ON SAMAWAN PEOPLE BALE BRANG VILLAGE

This study discusses how the perspective of Islamic law and cultural philosophy and Barodak Rapancar for the Samawa Studi community in Bale Brang Village, Sumbawa Regency. Barodak Rapancar is carried out when someone is going to have a wedding in Bale Brang Village, the couple is scrubbed using a potion commonly referred to by the community as odak, the odak is processed with a mixture of bark from various types of multipurpose trees. The people of Bale Brang believe that if this tradition is not carried out, the family of the bride and groom will experience a form of rabuyak disease. Rabuyak disease namely lumps on the head accompanied by itching, bleeding from the eyes when crying, trance, ribs appearing a few centimeters, and several other strange diseases caused by violating the life cycle ceremony.

Adoption Level of Agroforestry Practices in Katsina State, Nigeria

Unsustainable forest land use practices have resulted in land degradation in Nigeria leading to low crop yield. Agroforestry is a viable option for reversing dwindling crop yields through proper soil management practices. There is notably no sufficient published information on agroforestry practices (AP) in Katsina State. The aim of this study was to assess AP for sustainable land use in the study area. Multistage stratified sampling design was used to select respondents from the study. Three Local Government Areas (LGAs) were randomly selected from each of the agro-ecological zones (Sahel, Sudan and Guinea) of Katsina State. Within each of the selected LGAs, one community was randomly selected and forty respondents were randomly sampled from each community. Using structured questionnaire, information was sought on socio-economic and AP. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Based on the results, multipurpose trees on farmland (79%), windbreaks (50%), woodlots (49.7%), improved fallow in shifting cultivation (32%) and home gardens (24.7%) were the common AP in the study area. Benefits of AP in the area included preservation of the environment (98.5%), provision of fruits and leaves (98%), and improvement of soil fertility (98%), erosion control (98%) and improvement of farmers’ income (96%). Agroforestry practices enrich the soil with important nutrients and prevent soil erosion. The adoption of multipurpose trees on farmland in the study area will help in preventing environmental degradation, desertification and enhance food crop production.