Kenya study highlights complexity of tree-planting schemes
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A smallholder farm in Vihiga County in Western Kenya
view moreCredit: Ennia Bosshard
Research with smallholder farmers in Kenya shows that tree-planting schemes must account for complex local issues and preferences.
Tree planting is central to many countries’ climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation goals, and Kenya alone plans to plant 15 billion trees by 2032.
Adding trees and shrubs to farmland (called agroforestry) can boost biodiversity, carbon storage, soil health, food production and income. But many tree-planting schemes overlook diversity and promote a narrow range of species.
The new study – led by the University of Exeter – examined the factors that enable or prevent Kenyan smallholders from increasing the diversity of trees and shrubs on their land.
“In Sub-Saharan Africa, where most food is produced on small farms, many countries are promoting agroforestry to address climate change and protect biodiversity,” said Ennia Bosshard, from the Centre for Ecology and Conservation on Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall.
“Farmers play a crucial role in this effort as guardians of the land and trees, making it important to understand their decision-making regarding tree growing.”
The researchers interviewed 620 smallholder farmers in the Kakamega forest landscape in Western Kenya.
“Key factors in their decision-making included past experiences, the influence of other farmers, and the perceived ability to grow different tree species,” Bosshard continued.
Kenyan farmers in the study were generally positive about increasing the diversity of trees on their farms diversifying trees – but the study identified several barriers.
Farmers were worried about negative consequences such as the risk of attracting harmful wildlife and harming the soil, farms being too small, lacking time and knowledge, and following local beliefs about trees.
Bosshard added: “We found that certain farmers were more likely to increase the tree and shrub diversity on their farms, especially if they had higher education (such as a university degree or a diploma), were heads of their households, had higher income, or relied fully on farming for their livelihoods.”
To promote agroforestry that benefits people, nature and the climate, policies should address these barriers and support enabling factors raised by the farmers.
And a similar approach could be used around the world, ensuring that decision-making takes account of local factors.
The study was supported by the One CGIAR Nature+ initiative.
The paper, published in the journal People and Nature, is entitled: “Understanding smallholder decision-making to increase farm tree diversity: Enablers and barriers for forest landscape restoration in Western Kenya.”
Journal
People and Nature
Article Title
Understanding smallholder decision-making to increase farm tree diversity: Enablers and barriers for forest landscape restoration in Western Kenya
Article Publication Date
28-Jan-2025
Western Kenyan farmers favor restoring land with native trees. Yet barriers remain
Smallholders in Western Kenya strongly support native-tree restoration due to long-term benefits for landscape restoration, productivity and livelihoods, new research shows. Digital tools and community buy-in are successfully backing restoration projects.
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A farmer waters seedlings along the Nzoia River in Siaya, Kenya.
view moreCredit: Rachel Kibui/NATURE+, Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT
African nations have grand ambitions to green up landscapes with trees; the Kenyan government, for example, launched an initiative to plant 15 billion trees by 2032. The hope is that new trees could help fight desertification, create opportunities for livelihood diversification, support nutritional diets, restore biodiversity in highly degraded land and capture planet-heating carbon. Restoring lands using trees could empower millions whose livelihoods depend on working the land while generating multiple environmental and social benefits.
Yet tree planting projects often fall short because of a poor diversity of tree species and inadequate follow-through to nurture seedlings into mature trees.
“While many tree planting projects focus on integrating trees in agricultural landscapes, their outcomes are often constrained because they don’t consider the local context and trade-offs involved for smallholder farmers,” said Ennia Bosshard, a Ph.D. researcher at the University of Exeter. Bosshard and colleagues including Chris Kettle of the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT recently explored the “barriers and enablers” tree-planting smallholders face in research published in People and Nature on January 28. Some may find the results surprising.
A farm in Vihiga County, Kenya, where trees are integrated into the landscape. (Photo: Ennia Bosshard for the Alliance)
Snakes and enablers
The study found that farmers’ positive past experiences with planting trees were key enablers. Farmers were also more likely to become directly involved in increasing tree diversity when they heard the experiences of their peers who said the positive results were worth the wait. Interestingly, other social pressures like those from family, elders, or media had little to no impact on decision-making.
Although farmers were broadly enthused by the benefits of increased tree diversity – better crop yields or climate resilience, for example – the study revealed some concerns about some potential consequences.
“One surprising result we found was that, in particular, the fear of increasing tree diversity attracting harmful wildlife like snakes or insects played an important role in willingness to diversify trees on farms,” Bosshard said. (In the Kenyan study area, venomous snakes are legitimately concerning.) “But overall we found very positive attitudes toward integrating native tree species on or near farms.”
Another concern was that tree planting provides its greatest benefits over time.
“Benefits take many years to appear. Farmers may have more immediate concerns and priorities,” Kettle said. “This should be a call to central planners and development organizations to listen a little more closely to the smallholders, particularly their short-term issues, when deploying massive tree-restoration plans.”
Local trees for local benefits
In addition to increasing the enablers and taming the snakes already mentioned, researchers said specific local challenges need locally designed solutions.
“Our research highlights that diversifying trees on farms is perceived as having benefits as well as costs,” Bosshard said. “More work is needed to understand how to maximize the benefits—like food security and soil fertility—while addressing farmers’ concerns, such as dealing with wildlife.”
Next steps include increased peer-to-peer learning, stronger policy designed for restoration practitioners, and targeted interventions, like increasing the quantity and quality of tree-planting material.
Alliance researchers point to two key targeted interventions that have grown considerably under the CGIAR Nature-Positive Solutions Initiative: Diversity for Restoration (D4R) and My Farm Trees (MFT). Both tools were deployed extensively by the CGIAR Nature-Positive Solutions Initiative through its RESTORE work area.
D4R increases the scientific knowledge base for the adaptive and resilient use of local tree species in forest landscape restoration, whose life histories and cultural uses have been long understudied by science. MFT helps increase the capacities of local communities to manage, monitor and verify their tree-planting activities from seed collection to nursery work and tree growth, and provides digital payments to incentivize communities who want to increase tree diversity in production areas.
“D4R and MFT draw strongly on local restoration knowledge and needs, which is critical to building tools that can help improve the track record of tree-based restoration,” Kettle said.
Learn more about tree restoration research and implementation by CGIAR scientists.
Diversity for Restoration website
Empowering communities to restore land and biodiversity through incentives and digital innovation (Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) panel discussion)
Tree tech: Growing a More Resilient Future
MFT Webinar, 2-pager , and concept note
MFT on LinkedIn
Crops in a family plot Vighia County, Kenya, where trees are integrated into the farming landscape.
Credit
Ennia Bosshard for the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT.
Journal
People and Nature
Method of Research
Survey
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
Understanding smallholder decision-making to increase farm tree diversity: Enablers and barriers for forest landscape restoration in Western Kenya
Article Publication Date
28-Jan-2025
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