EthioLatinCoffee Community of Practice Hosts Workshop on NTFP Sustainability

The EthioLatinCoffee Community of Practice, under the auspices of OSSREA, successfully hosted a half-day workshop on Enhancing Productivity and Sustainability in the Management of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) on November 19, 2024, at the Sapphire Addis Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This important workshop was organized as part of the Women, Coffee, and Climate Project, supported by Spanish Cooperation and the EU DESIRA program.

The workshop brought together a diverse group of stakeholders, including experts in forestry, coffee, and NTFPs. Participants engaged in discussions aimed at fostering sustainable practices in NTFP management within the Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve—a region recognized for its biodiversity and economic reliance on NTFPs.

The program featured interactive sessions focused on the strategic goals of NTFP management. Alemu Tesfaye, OSSREA’s Regional Program Manager, opened the workshop with welcome remarks, emphasizing the importance of NTFPs for livelihoods and environmental sustainability. This was followed by a presentation by Dr. Yonas Yohannes, who outlined the strategic plan for sustainable NTFP management.

Dr. Yohannes’ presentation included:

• Situational Analysis: Highlighting the current status, stakeholder roles, and challenges in NTFP management.
• Strategic Goals and Action Steps: Covering areas such as awareness creation, capacity building, sustainable harvesting, and integration of traditional knowledge.
• Monitoring and Evaluation Framework: Proposing systems for tracking progress and ensuring accountability.

Interactive sessions allowed participants to provide feedback on the strategy, with group discussions and feedback stations facilitating valuable exchanges of ideas.

The workshop focused on seven strategic goals aimed at enhancing NTFP management in the Yayu Coffee Forest:

1. Awareness Creation and Empowerment: Educating communities on the importance of sustainable practices and empowering women through resources and skills development.
2. Knowledge Sharing and Capacity Building: Creating platforms for sharing best practices and training local experts.
3. Research Priorities: Identifying key research areas for sustainable NTFP management.
4. Traditional Knowledge Integration: Leveraging indigenous knowledge for resource management and climate resilience.
5. Sustainable Harvesting: Developing guidelines to prevent resource depletion and maintain ecological balance.
6. Domestication and Commercialization: Supporting market access and income diversification for communities, especially women.
7. Advocacy for Supportive Policies: Promoting regulatory frameworks to sustain NTFP management.

Participants provided constructive feedback on the strategy’s implementation, emphasizing the need for:

• Greater inclusion of community voices in planning and monitoring.
• Enhanced collaboration across sectors to address challenges like deforestation and market access.
• Strengthened capacity-building initiatives to empower women and local experts.
• The workshop concluded with a note of gratitude to the participants, affirming that their valuable feedback will be integrated into the strategy. OSSREA committed to engaging with relevant stakeholders to advance the strategy to the implementation stage.

This workshop underscored the critical role of NTFPs in balancing environmental sustainability with economic development. By fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange, the EthioLatinCoffee Community of Practice is paving the way for innovative solutions to the challenges facing the Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve.

For more updates on this project and future events, follow the EthioLatinCoffee Community of Practice on www.ethiolatincoffee.com