CIFOR–ICRAF publishes over 750 publications every year on agroforestry, forests and climate change, landscape restoration, rights, forest policy and much more – in multiple languages.

CIFOR–ICRAF addresses local challenges and opportunities while providing solutions to global problems for forests, landscapes, people and the planet.

We deliver actionable evidence and solutions to transform how land is used and how food is produced: conserving and restoring ecosystems, responding to the global climate, malnutrition, biodiversity and desertification crises. In short, improving people’s lives.

Assessment of vegetation characteristics and production of Boswellia papyrifera woodlands in north western lowlands of Ethiopia

Export citation

The dry land woodlands in Ethiopia possess diverse tree species that are known for their valuable non-timber forest products (NTFPs). The study was carried out in three districts namely Kafta Humera (Adi-Goshu), Metema (Lemlem-Terara) and Sherkole (Gemed). A total of 24 species were recorded across the three study sites. The average number of stems per hectare across the sites was 276 and the average basal area was estimated to be 9.33 m2 ha-1. Based on their population structures, the woodland species can be categorized as Group I contained species with a progressively declining numbers of trees with increasing diameter in Gemed site and Group II was comprised of both Adi-Goshu and Lemlem-Terara sites with a bell-shaped or irregular distribution. In addition, Boswellia papyrifera is known to occur in various parts of Ethiopia including Tigray, Amhara and Benshangul Gumuz regions. Therefore, the total production of gum olibanum and gum arabic in the three sites was recorded approximately 12,112.98 tons with the net income of 129.34 million Birr since 1999. Therefore, Ethiopia will be more benefited from the export of these products, provided efforts are made to develop and manage these resources in a sustainable way.
Download:

Related publications