Protocol for the Agricultural Biodiversity (ABD) Assessment in Mali / Protocole pour l’évaluation de la Biodiversité Agricole (ABD) á Mali (EN)

Abstract

The biodiversity of plant and animal species both domesticated and wild used for food by humans (referred to here as agricultural biodiversity—ABD) is one of the most important assets for rural households, particularly for the poor in marginal areas such as the drylands of the developing world. A contribution of Bioversity International to the Dryland Systems CGIAR Research Programme (CRP) [http://drylandsystems.cgiar.org/] has been to examine systematically the diversity of these species in CRP target sites in Mali, Ghana, Malawi and India. Bioversity and partners have carried out a set of Agricultural Biodiversity Assessments in these countries. In the case of Mali, the selected sites include two villages in the Sikasso region: Kani and Farakoro. These villages have been already part of an ICRISAT baseline survey. An additional village, N’Goutjina, was selected by Bioversity to complement the work. Here we present the protocols used for collecting the data from Mali. The objective of the ABD Assessment is to identify and quantify all the useful plant, animal, and aquatic species utilized by rural households and communities in the Dryland Systems CRP sites, as well as information on markets attended and general socioeconomic household characteristics. This information will be used to characterize three dimensions of ABD: (1) diversity in the production system, including on farm and common lands; (2) dietary diversity; and (3) market diversity; in terms of the elements and relationships involved and the exogenous factors that influence their status and dynamics. These data will be the basis for analyzing the roles of ABD in the lives and livelihoods of these rural populations in order to identify entry points for designing and implementing interventions that contribute to improve their well-being.