Determinants of the consumption of non-timber forest products in the City of Kananga: Case of Gnetum Africanum (MFumbwa)

Abstract

Non-timber forest products are of great socio-cultural and religious importance in forest areas. They provide food, medicinal plants, ornamental plants, energy, construction materials, fishing equipment, goods and various utensils to the populations. As such, non-timber forest products contribute both to food security and to the general well-being of the population of the city of Kananga. Despite their importance and their enormous potential, there is a very low valuation and consumption of certain non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in this City, difficult legal access to these products and a large-scale exploitation that is difficult for the different social strata concerned. Following this constant, this study aims to identify the factors associated with the consumption of Gnetum Africanum (MFumbwa) by households in the City of Kananga in the DR. congo. Therefore, the use of primary data through the probability sampling method associated with the multistage sampling technique was necessary to determine the 209 households to be surveyed. After analysis and processing of the statistical data, the results of the Probit regression indicate that the consumption of MFumbwa increases with the variables : household size, marital status, tribute of the head of household, occupation of the head of household, religion, and main source of income. Information. These results attest to the importance of households in the city of Kananga to adopt MFumbwa in their usual food consumption, because it has a significant nutritional value in the body.

Keywords : Determinants of consumption ; Non-timber forest products ; Gnetum Africanum ; Probit.

JEL Classification: C31, C42, D12, Q51.

Paper type: Empirical research.