Promoting local fruit trees in the Sahel

November 9-12, 2009. Bamako, Mali. The aim of this workshop was to create awareness among policy makers and organisations involved in development of rural areas, and to contribute to an increased scientific knowledge about the fruit trees.

Despite a recent interest in local fruit trees, their potential is far from fully recognised. Emerging studies indicate that fruit trees play an important role in national economies, and that improved market access and knowledge will be able to increase the proportion. Improved management of the trees can increase the overall yield of the agroforestry parklands that represent the dominating agricultural land use in the Sahel. 


Being largely undomesticated, the possibilities for improved yield and quality through breeding are big, and if efficient distribution mechanisms for tree seed and plants are found, fruit yields can be increased considerably. 


One of the major constraints is the lack of young trees in the current agricultural systems, meaning that fruit trees will disappear in the long run unless management practices change.


Objectives:
The objective of the workshop was to increase rural livelihoods of people in the Sahel through an improved and sustainable use of local fruits trees. This will be achieved through

• Discussions of policy issues related to fruit trees, and through direct exchanges between policy makers and scientists
• Presentations and discussions of research results on fruit trees in the Sahel
• Discussions of dissemination systems and “how to get the knowledge to the farmers”
• Identification of new research topics and actions to improve the use of fruit trees

Partners:

	The Faculty of Life Science Forest & Landscape Denmark. Hørsholm Kongevej 11 DK-2970 Hørsholm Denmark
Forest & Landscape Denmark is a centre for research, education, and extension concerning forest, landscape and planning at the University of Copenhagen. FLD is co-ordinating the project and has inputs to socio-economics and seed distribution systems. Furthermore it is co-ordinating the activities on tree breeding and genetics.
	Centre National de Semences Forestières (CNSF) 01 BP 2682, Ouagadougou 01 Burkina Faso
CNSF is the national tree seed centre of Burkina Faso, and as such plays a leading role in Burkina Faso’s supply with tree seed. However, the institution also has a significant research component, in SAFRUIT, involved in socio-economics and marketing, vegetative propagation, tree breeding and seed supply systems
	Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherche Agricoles (INERA) 03 BP 7047, Ouagadougou 03 Burkina Faso
INERA is Burkina Faso ’s national research institution, responsible for research in agriculture and environmental issues. The institution has a leading role in SAFRUIT, in the studies of tree/crop interactions, and is involved in propagation and tree breeding.
	Institut d’Economie Rurale (IER) BP258 Bamako Mali
IER is the main institution for agricultural research in Mali, and participates in all aspects of SAFRUIT. IER is leading the research on vegetative propagation and conducts studies of socio-economics and marketing, tree/crop interactions, tree breeding and seed distribution systems.
	ICRAF Sahel c/o ICRISAT BP 320, Bamako Mali
ICRAF is the CGIAR organisation responsible for research in agroforestry.ICRAF participates in the tree breeding aspects of SAFRUIT.
	Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique du Niger (INRAN) BP429 Niamey Niger
INRAN is conducting research in agriculture and natural resources in Niger . INRAN participates in the research on socio-economics and marketing, tree breeding and seed distribution systems in SAFRUIT.
	International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) BP12404 Niamey Niger
ICRISAT is the CGIAR organisation responsible for crop research in the dry tropics. ICRISATs participation in SAFRUIT is on tree breeding and vegetative propagation. University of Wales, Bangor (UWB),School of the Environment & Natural Resources LL57 2UW, Deniol Road, Bangor Great Britain Wageningen University and Research Centre Agricultural Economics Research Institute (LEI), The Netherlands PO Box 297003, 2502 LS The Hague The Netherlands