Population Structure and Regeneration Status of Vitellaria paradoxa (C.F.Gaertn.) Under Different Land Management Regimes in Uganda

Global to local sustainability

“…As shea is a multi-purpose tree used every day by rural African communities (Diarrassouba (2009), all the households said they derived numerous benefits from shea, with income being ranked as the number one benefit and formed up to 60% of the total household income, although the majority (74%) of the households indicated that revenue from shea constituted up to 20% of the total household income. As previously reported by Okullo et al (2004) and Byakagaba et al (2011) that shea is one of valuable trees in parkland landscapes in Sudano-Sahelian belt of Africa which generate economic gains for the local people, such significant economic gains from shea used to take care of households and other financial needs are a major incentive for farmers to continue managing and conserving the trees in communities where the trees grow.…”

“…This could be as a result of the recognition of the shea trees being of high priority for African genetic resources (Teklehaimanot, 2004) and economically valuable (Okullo et al, 2004;Byakagaba et al, 2011). As a result, to ensure that such trees are conserved to provide them with benefits, most farmers who are natives in their communities usually manage their trees, which significantly benefit from agronomic practices, such as weeding and management of soil fertility employed for annual crops (Masters et al, 2004).…”

“…The region contains a number of tree species of high economic importance. The shea tree is one of the numerous economically-valued trees (Okullo et al, 2004;Byakagaba et al, 2011). The species grows naturally throughout most of the region and has been recorded in 21 African countries.…”

“…With regards to ownership of land and trees, farmers who personally owned their farms together with the shea trees were the most willing to continue managing the trees probably as a result of their multiple uses (Teklehaimanot, 2004) and economic value (Okullo et al, 2004;Byakagaba et al, 2011). It is a tree species of high priority for African genetic resources (Teklehaimanot, 2004) and the ripe fruits are eaten as food during periods of food scarcity (Lamien, 2007).…”

“…The shea tree is generally considered to be one of the most important tree species in the West African parklands. Its uses range from provision of income to environmental services in the semi-arid region (Teklehaimanot 2004;Okullo et al, 2004;Byakagaba et al, 2011). The edible fruit pulp of the tree is consumed by both humans and animals while the butter is generally used in cooking food as well as in the pharmaceutical and confectionery industries for the production of useful products such as body creams and lotions and other body healthcare products (Lamien, 2007).…”