Influence of property rights on farmer's willingness to plant indigenous fruit trees in Malawi and Zambia.

Despite the important role that indigenous fruit trees play in the food security and livelihood of households in southern Africa, investments in the cultivation and conservation of indigenous fruit trees (IFTs) by farm communities is very low. Through the use of reconnaissance surveys, household surveys and focus group discussions, this study assessed the effects of land and tree tenures and household characteristics on farmers' willingness to plant and domesticate IFTs in Malawi and Zambia. Results revealed that 98% of land cultivated by smallholder farmers in Malawi and Zambia were under customary land tenure system, and were conducive for tree cultivation as opposed to leasehold land tenure systems. The existing land user-rights of customary land were of private property regime, and provided smallholder farmers much freedom in land utilization. Household tree tenure was observed to account for 96% of tree tenure types, and is favourable to IFTs' cultivation. Farmers' resource endowment, cultural practices and socio-economic characteristics had overriding effects on fruit tree planting. The weak extension capacity, lack of knowledge in IFT cultivation, seedling scarcity, cultural norms such as matrilineal inheritance system were identified as major disincentives to fruit tree planting. Household size and formal education increased the probability of farmers to plant fruit trees in the study area. Contrary to popular notion, the existing land and tree tenure systems do not impose constrains on the cultivation of IFT by households.

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