Certification of Non-Wood Forest Products
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The paper provides an overview on the current status of NWFP certification by discussing three main questions: i) What are relevant standards for NWFP certification? ii) How des certification contribute to the sustainable use of NWFP? iii) What are the challenges and perspectives of NWFP certification? Despite the importance of NWFP for subsistence purposes and income generation, NWFP certification is still in its infancy - only few NWFP have been or are in the process of being certified. Certif ication is defined as a “procedure by which assurance is given that a product, process or service is in conformity with certain standards”. According of the perceptions and interests of stakeholders concerned, certification is being perceived either as market-based instrument or ‘soft’ policy tool. Certification schemes relevant for NWFP include forest management certification, organic certification, social certification and product quality certification. They are voluntary schemes, which have t o be in accordance to mandatory national and international rules, regulations and conventions. A preliminary assessment of the impact of certification on the sustainable use of NWFP has been carried out by FAO based on an literature review and the implementation of case studies covering three different species/products and four exporting/importing countries: i) devil’s claw (Harpagophytum procumbens) in Namibia and Germany; ii) sheabutter (Vitellaria paradoxa) in Ghana; and iii) brazil nuts (Ber tholletia excelsa) in Bolivia. The paper summarizes the main results of the case studies by focussing on the following key issues: traceability, tenure rights, empowerment, market potential, costs, harvesting and mainstreaming. Based on above analysis, the following key challenges for NWFP certification have been identified: dispersion of producers and products, definition of sustainable harvesting levels, standard quality and complementarity, risk of user’s conflicts, unclear market potentials and economic benefits, insufficient product definition and classification, and limited suitability of different certification schemes. The paper concludes that the future potential for NWFP certification remains unclear and highly product and market specific. In addition, NWFP certification is more likely to happen in areas, where the various certification schemes are already applied. For the Central African region, the paper identifies major opportunities and challenges for NWFP certification.