Indigenous Knowledge and Development Monitor, December 1997


RESEARCH

UNHCR's environment and sanitation programme in refugee areas of Nepal
Since 1994 the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has been sponsoring projects aimed at improving the situation of Bhutanese refugees in the Jhapa and Morang districts of the Eastern Terai in Nepal. The projects are directed towards environment and health in the refugee camps and have been implemented by Consolidated Management Services Nepal Private Ltd. (CMS). Recently, CMS concluded a feasibility study entitled 'Improvement in environment and sanitation through anaerobic digestion of human waste'. (See also IKDM 4(1))

Thus far, the focus has been on improving sanitary conditions in the area of the refugee camps. But the presence of the refugees also affects various activities of the local population. Local people complain, for example, that because the refugees are provided with food, clothes and shelter by the UNHCR, they can afford to work for lower wages than the local people. This affects the job opportunities and incomes of the local people. For this reason, the UNHCR is also concerned about places identified as refugee-affected areas. CMS is therefore proposing four projects: two aimed at a specific refugee-affected area, and two at a Bhutanese refugee camp. The projects involve:

On 16 October 1997, a formal agreement between CMS and the UNHCR was signed, and the first two projects will soon begin in Ward No. 1 of Pathari village. Basically, the aim is to install four latrines and three urinals for males and six latrines for females. This will have a direct impact on the hygiene of the surrounding area since most of the households at present have no alternative to open space for defecating, and the same is true for all the vendors and visitors at the very lively nearby bazaar. There is also a bus stop nearby, and the passengers in future will also use the latrines. The latrine waste is to be processed in a 15 m3 biodigester, which will produce gas for fuel, and stabilized manure for fertilizing crops and gardens. The gas will be used by low-income households close to the project area for cooking food.

In December 1997, the training project will begin with a five-day course for the first group of 20 inhabitants of Pathari, half of whom will be women. The group will include ward members, local leaders, community workers, school teachers, and health workers.

As CMS conducts the programme, it explicitly wants to make use of the indigenous knowledge and traditional skills of the people concerned. This will apply not only to environment and sanitation, but in other areas as well, such as farming practices.

For more information, please contact:
Professor Amrit B. Karki
CMS House
Lazimpat P. O. Box 10872
Kathmandu, Nepal
E-mail: cmsnepal@cms.wlink.com.np

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IK-related research under NIRP
The Netherlands-Israel Development Research Programme (NIRP) funds research carried out within collaborative frameworks by research institutes in Israel, developing countries (to date, mainly in Africa) and the Netherlands. A number of NIRP-funded projects, specifically in West Africa, deal with issues of indigenous knowledge (IK) and popular participation in development processes. The programme is now entering its sixth year and some of the research projects are nearing their end.

One of these is 'Knowledge systems to facilitate sustainable agriculture: the case of West Africa'. This project has been implemented under the supervision of Professor A. Blum, of Hebrew University in Rehovoth (Israel); Professor N. Röling, of Wageningen Agicultural University (the Netherlands); and Dr R.C.Tossou, of Université National du Bénin. Its aim has been to study the way that West African small-scale farmers make sense of methods for making sustainable use of locally available inputs. This 'sense-making' refers to indigenous knowledge. At the outset, in 1993, the aim was to mobilize IK. This would be done by investigating the then current efforts in Benin to improve farmers' 'sense-making'. The research results were to be used for developing a model for policy to enhance the contribution of the rural knowledge system, and for designing extension interventions to improve farmers' 'sense-making' (see also IKDM 1(2)).

Now, after four years of research, the project is to be discussed. This will take place at a meeting of the African researchers who are working in NIRP-funded projects in West Africa. The meeting will be held on 19-20 November 1997 under NIRP auspices, but with the help of the Secretariat of the Association of African Universities, in Accra (Ghana). The purpose of the discussion will be to exchange information and insights into the meaning of IK in the various projects.

For more information, please contact
Ms Miriam Bar-Lev
NIRP Israel Secretariat
CINADCO
P.O. Box 7011
Tel Aviv, 61070 Israel
Fax: +972-3-6971 677.

Or:
Mr H.J. Mastebroek
NIRP Netherlands Secretariat
Nuffic-CIRAN
P.O. Box 29777
2502 LT The Hague, the Netherlands
Fax: +31-70-4260 329
E-mail: hmbroek@nuffic.nl

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'Strengthening communication': a project in Tanzania
Sokoine University of Agriculture, in Morogoro (Tanzania), has entered into the next phase of a project aimed at creating links between small farmers and the university. The project, called 'Strengthening communication', has been underway since 1991. Over the past six years, university researchers have been studying the literature, conducting field surveys, and coaching undergraduates engaged in special projects. Research has dealt with production technologies, the utilization and handling of animal products, forecasting, and the use of plants for medicinal purposes. Besides in Morogoro itself, fieldwork has been conducted in Ruvuma, Iringa, Mwanza, Tanga and Kilimanjaro.

Several interesting reports have resulted from the undergraduates' projects--to mention three: Mushroom identification, cultivation and marketing, by S.S. Woisso; Comparative study of bean cropping systems in western and eastern Uluguru Mountains, and the effects on bean pests, by K.D. Lunalilo; and Estimation of post-harvest losses in fruits in Morogoro District, by J. Chikira.

Farmers have been participating in workshops and meetings organized by the university, and have found it very useful to meet with researchers, extensionists and policy-makers. The interaction in fact has been mutually beneficial. As a process, the transfer of knowledge to farmers has been not entirely one-sided.

Some of the university projects have been supported by the Foundation for Human Progess and the French NGO CIMADE.

The project was coordinated by Professor A.S.M. Mgeni. On 27 July 1997, however, Professor Mgeni passed away. This is a great loss to all who knew him and who appreciated his way of working.

For more information, contact:
Professor R. E. Malimbwi
Head, Department of Forest Mensuration and Management
Faculty of Forestry
Sokoine University of Agriculture
P.O. Box 3013, Chuo Kikuu
Morogoro, Tanzania 

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Ethnobotanical studies of anti-tuberculosis plants in Egbado (Nigeria)
The Department of Biological Sciences, Ogun State University (Nigeria), and the Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Ibadan (Nigeria), are conducting ethnobotanical surveys into several killer diseases. These surveys, adapted to the limits of the available resources, are aimed in the first place at providing more information on plants which are traditionally used to treat the diseases. No less important is the ultimate goal, which is to create a working relationship between scientists and the traditional medical practitioners. Combined in a complementary fashion, their efforts could help to alleviate the suffering of those Nigerians who cannot afford to buy the expensive western type of medicine and treatment. Fostering this cooperation fits in well with the federal government's policies.

The first disease studied has been tuberculosis. This choice led almost naturally to the Egbado region, since a number of widely acclaimed traditional specialists in the treatment of tuberculosis live and work in this area. The research was carried out by J.S. Ashidi, Z.O. Gbile and A.E. Ayodele. They conducted interviews with four prominent specialists, and with herbal sellers in markets. They also enlisted informants to procure plants for their field collections. The researchers obtained information regarding which parts of the plants are used, modes of preparation, dosages, precautions, and possible side effects. Recipes were also purchased from herb sellers. All identifications were confirmed at the Forest Research Herbarium (FHI) in Ibadan.

A total of 45 plants used for the traditional treatment of tuberculosis were identified. Prominent among them were Garcinia kola Heckel; Xylopia aethiopica (Dunal) A. Rich; Musa nana Lour.; Anchomanes difformis (BL) Engl.; Alchornea cordifolia (Schum & Thonn.) Muell. Arg.; Allium ascalonicum L.; Tetrapleura tetraptera (Schum. & Thonn.) Taub.; Olax subscorpioidea Oliv.; and Piper guineense (Schum. & Thonn).

Some of these plants have been phytochemically screened. Xylopia aethiopica, the fruits of which are used in many traditional herbal preparations, is known to produce xylopic acid, a substance which has been found to have antimicrobial effects. The various parts of Garcinia kola, such as seeds, stem and roots, are known to possess anti-hepatotoxic and hepatropic properties, and the petroleum ether extract and the top layer of the acetone extract have been found to demonstrate significant antimicrobial activity. Several flavonoids benzophenones, triterpenes and biflavonoids have been isolated from this species and characterized.

A total of 33 recipes were obtained. The preparations range from monoculture decoctions and concoctions to infusions which, in few cases, contain other ingredients, such as potash, allum, peppermint, palm oil and egg yolk.

The research results are encouraging in that they eliminate the need for any further random searching for active ingredients for the treatment of tuberculosis.

For more information, please contact:
A.E. Ayodele
Dept. of Botany and Microbiology
University of Ibadan
Ibadan, Nigeria

Or:
Z.O. Gbile
c/o P.O. Box 12747
General Post Ofice
Ibadan, Nigeria
Tel.: +234-22-415 971

 

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