The contribution of Eucalyptus woodlots initiative to livelihoods of small-scale timber growers in Vhembe district, Limpopo Province

Abstract

The Eucalyptus woodlots provide material benefits that could support the livelihoods of the communities. These trees are very important to the rural households; they provide an array of products, particularly timber and fuelwood. However, there is lack of information on contribution of Eucalyptus woodlots on the livelihoods of rural small-scale timber growers in Vhembe district, Limpopo. Establishment of Eucalyptus woodlots could be used as a poverty fighting tool in rural areas such as Vhembe district, the question that arises is; to what extent does these Eucalyptus woodlots contribute to the livelihoods of these small-scale timber growers? Therefore, the main objective of the study was to assess the contribution of Eucalyptus woodlots initiative to the livelihoods of small-scale timber growers. The specific objectives of the study were to evaluate economic benefits derived from the Eucalyptus woodlots initiative by small-scale timber growers, to determine the factors affecting the contribution of woodlots to livelihoods and exploring possible interventions to improve the contribution of Eucalyptus woodlots to livelihood of small-scale timber growers in Vhembe district. The focus of the study was on woodlots established by small-scale timber growers as individuals and those established under the government programmes before 1994 and after 1994 in the new democratic government. A mixed methods approach was adopted since all methods (quantitative and qualitative) had limitations, thus this research intended to reduce the bias inherent in individual methods. The methods were based either on constructivism or positivism. A questionnaire with open ended questions was used for qualitative data collection. The qualitative data was analysed using the thematic analysis approach, through Atlas ti Version 8 software. Data collection for the quantitative phase was done through administering a questionnaire with close and open-ended questions. Collected data was analysed using IBM-SPSS version 25 and descriptive statistics tests were performed. Major socio-economic benefits of the Eucalyptus woodlots were timber production, employment and different Non-Timber Forest Products. The factors affecting the contribution of Eucalyptus woodlots growers’ livelihood and solutions thereof were resources required for production such as skills, costs, funding and support by government and other institutions. It was observed that Eucalyptus woodlots initiative had job creation potential. More than a quarter (37%), of the respondents survives through Eucalyptus woodlots production since they are unemployed. There are significant socio-economic benefits from Eucalyptus woodlots and the most common benefits are timber production, Non-Timber Forest Products and employment opportunities among the participants. Therefore, attention should be given to manage the identified socio-economic benefits and factors in order to change small-scale timber growers’ attitude towards Eucalyptus woodlot initiative.