Opportunities for building nutrition-sensitive non-wood forest productive value chains in Uganda

Non-wood forest products (NWFPs), defined as tangible physical goods of biological origin other than wood from forests, woodlands or trees outside forest, provide resilience to food and household income systems. They provide an important source of micro and macro nutrients, supplementing basic nutritional needs in rural communities. Intake of adequate quantities of nutrients reduces the risks of malnutrition especially among children and women. Intake of nutrients in developing countries is reportedly correlated to forest cover. However, despite the benefits of forests and woodlands in providing alternative, diverse food and livelihood sources, deforestation and forest degradation are reducing tree cover.

• View from World Agroforestry website