ABS Provides Opportunities for Indigenous and Local Communities in the Limpopo National Park. An ethnobotanical survey of plants used by the Changana community, Limpopo National Park, Mozambique


 Background: Genetic resources are important for the livelihood of the rural population in developing countries and have an economic potential that, through an efficient Access and Benefit Sharing regime, can support sustainable economic development. Considering the wealth of genetic resources in Mozambique, its eligibility for Access and Benefit Sharing projects has been explored. Methods: The socio-economic status of the Changana community of the Limpopo National Park area was studied through a 500 questionnaires socio-economic survey. Considering the livelihood role that plant genetic resources could play for the local rural population, an ethnobotanical survey was conducted, with the support of villagers knowledgeable of wild plant resources and their use. Results: Several criticalities in the living condition of local communities and a generalized lack of adequate economic incomes have emerged from the socio-economic analysis. A list of 101 plant species with important commercial possibilities, mainly related to medical, food and cosmetic sectors, was provided by the ethnobotanical survey. Around 95% of the plant studied which could have effective medical properties showed the greatest potential.Conclusion: A significant potential for Mozambique to be included in Access and Benefit Sharing initiatives was recognized. The present work can contribute to the identification of Access and Benefit Sharing pilot projects, toward the evaluation of the policy efficacy and implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in the Country. The Limpopo National Park area can support Access and Benefit Sharing projects toward the economic development of the indigenous and local communities and the conservation of the Country’s biodiversity.


Introduction
In line with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), this work is aimed at promoting the conservation and sustainable use of Mozambique's genetic resources (GR) and the achievement of a fair and equitable sharing of the bene ts arising out of their use [40], while contributing to the Country's sustainable economic development.
Around 54,7% of the Mozambican population lives below the poverty line [28] and, as reported by the World Bank [38], around 66% of the Country population of 28 million, lives and works in rural areas. Mozambican national and rural economies depend heavily on the goods and services provided by biodiversity [26]. The biodiversity richness of the Country emerges from the high diversity of its four main natural ecosystems (terrestrial, marine, coastal and interior water) and ve dominants biomes (1. Arid and semi-arid forests; 2. Tropical and subtropical rangelands with savannas, thickets and woodlands; 3. Floodplains and savannas; 4. Mountain grasslands with thicket; 5. Mangroves). Floristically there are four phyto-geographic regions. Around 70% of the land is covered with vegetation: 51% of forests and 19% of other types of woody vegetation. Recent studies indicate the presence of 5.781 species of plants, including 800 endemic or nearly endemic, which represent an important resource for communities in terms of food, medicinal products, construction equipment, and power supply [28].
Considering the CBD's de nition of GR, as "genetic material of actual or potential value" [40], and the wide traditional use of Mozambique's plant genetic resource, these can expectedly provide the raw material for the development of new commercial products for the pharmaceutical, agricultural and cosmetic sectors. Through the implementation of the Access and Bene t Sharing (ABS) principles, introduced by the CBD and then expanded by its additional protocol: The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Bene ts Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity (NP) [2], it is possible to achieve a fair and equitable sharing of bene ts associated to the use of GR. Thus, this work builds on the contention that an e cient ABS regime may represent a tool for sustainable utilization of biodiversity toward economic development, while contributing to alleviate poverty [17] and meeting the indigenous people's basic needs [36].
A valid example is provided by The Hoodia gordonii case. Such plant has long been used by the San peoples for its appetite suppressant qualities, while serving both as food and water source. Information on its use by the San, guided the Council for Scienti c and Industrial Research (CSIR) of South Africa in a research and development project [6; 1]. This project led to the Figure 1. Study area. The GLTP and its geographical position (on the left) and the survey sites (on the right). Maps created with QGIS software The economy of the District is mainly based on agriculture, livestock, shing, and tourism. However, the primary source of livelihood of the District is agriculture with around 80% of the population living from agricultural activities, mainly practiced by family producers organized in associations [25]. Livestock farming includes breeding cattle, goats, poultry and, to a lesser extent, pigs, while the crop production is based on maize, cowpeas, groundnuts, potatoes, watermelons, and pumpkins. Also oranges are produced so as a small amount of vegetables [13].
Although most of the population is engaged in agriculture, its productive potential is not fully tapped in the District, mainly because of rudimental production methods, lack of technical knowledge, the absence of an adequate network of services, and irregular rainfall [25]. Furthermore, the local wildlife has a notable impact on agricultural production. Human-wildlife con icts (HWC), mainly in the form of damage to crops, occurs frequently because of the coexistence of human and wildlife communities [12]. This phenomenon is common across the Country, with the Gaza province emerging as one of the most affected, particularly by elephants (Loxodonta africana) [20]. Within the Park, the area belonging to the Massingir District is the most implicated in this problem. According to data collected by the LNP between 2007 and 2010, three-quarter of the HWC incidents within the Park occurred in the District's area with most of them involving damage to crops by elephants and hippopotamuses (Hippopotamus amphibius) [23]. The mitigation of HWC has been one of the reasons why the authorities have justi ed the resettlement programme for people who live in the Shingwedzi River Valley [24]. As can be inferred by the "Resettlement Action Plan for Macavane village", relocation has been adopted as the main solution to deal with the growing HWC, while promoting the development of tourism and the conservation of wildlife, consistently with the identi cation of the Shingwedzi River Valley as a primary area for these objectives [29]. Although the resettlement programme was presented as a development opportunity for residents [24], other resettlement programmes were associated to the high risk of further impoverishment [4]. Indeed, the residents of Shingwedzi Rivers Valley feel deprived of the natural resources they traditionally turned to for their livelihood [24].
The commercialization of products derived from agriculture, livestock breeding or shing, is rendered di cult by the lack of adequate infrastructures. Indeed, the area is relatively isolated from the Country's commercial centres and the motorway network linking the main road to the villages is poor and frequently not accessible during the rainy season [13].
The climate of the District is dry semi-arid. Average annual temperature is about 30° C and annual rainfall is around 600 mm, with a potential evapotranspiration generally above 1.500 mm [25]. Two main season can be identi ed: a dry season, from April/May to October/November, with temperatures ranging from 14°C to 28°C and maximum precipitation of around 70 mm; and a hot and humid season, from October/November to April/May (spring-summer period), with temperatures ranging from 20°C to 33°C and maximum precipitation of 370 mm [33].
The vegetation of the study area is included in the Zambezian phytogeographical region and is dominated by the Mopane forest (Colophospermum mopane) [16; 27] with monzo (Combretum imberbe) and mecrusse (Androstachys johnsonii) [25]. Around 15 plant communities have been described in the arid inland areas of the Gaza province. There are similarities between the landscapes of the LNP and those of the Kruger National Park. The main difference is the larger percentage of sandy landscapes of LNP, which make up 44% of its surface. The typical landscapes near the survey sites are Salvadora angustifolia oodplains, Colophospermum mopane shrubveld on calcrete, and the "Massingir Velho Sandveld" (Terminalia sericea -Eragrostis pallens and Combretum apiculatum -Pogonarthria squarrosa low woodlands, with patches of Colophospermum mopane -Panicum maximum short woodland) [35].
The socio-economic situation of the Park's ILCs In order to identify an ILC that could be involved in an ABS project a socio-economic survey of the Changana community was conducted, which included gathering information about the population's living conditions. 500 questionnaires were distributed between June and September 2016, with the contribution of two local o cers: the village chief of Mavodze (for the questionnaires distribution in the villages inside the Park) and Mr Antonio Jorge (for data collection in Massingir town). Their contribution was fundamental for translating the questionnaires from English to the local idiom (Shangana) and for overcoming other linguistic differences. The questionnaires of self-compiled type, with individual target and tied return, inquired about the level of education, the employment situation, housing condition, methods for the supply water, and the sources of energy. Interviewees were randomly selected.

List of plants species used by ILCs
In order to identify the GR for a potential ABS project, an ethnobotanical research was conducted in two phases. In the rst phase, from June 2016 to August 2018, the 53 species and associated TK of Ribeiro et al. [33] ethnobotanical research were used as a preliminary list. Such list was expanded with species commonly used by the Changana community as a food or energy resource, for producing manufacts, and in traditional medicine. For the selection of these species we used the contribution of local people, who indicated the vernacular names and the TK associated with them. The second phase (August 2018 -November 2018) entailed a re nement of the plant list, which also included the elimination of non-native species, identi ed through the reference online portals "Plants of the World online" (32) and "Global Biodiversity Information Facility" (15). Such an approach has been adopted for consistency with the biodiversity focussed programme SECOSUD II the present work is part of. In order to identify possible endemisms, the geographical distribution ranges of the species were investigated through the above databases. We considered as endemic species only occurring within the Mozambique's borders. In turn, as to the "near-endemic" category, considering its lack of a generally accepted de nition [11], the criterium we adopted included the following assumptions: 1) the species is globally known from ve or fewer localities; 2) the range of the species only extends to countries bordering Mozambique.

Results
The socio-economic situation of the Park's ILCs With around 90% of the questionnaires returned, the selection of operators and the adopted survey techniques can be considered appropriate. The most frequent age groups are "young" and "adults" (35% and 37,2% of respondents respectively).
Also "young adult" age group is well represented, with a 26,3% of respondents, while the "over 60" participation is low, with a 1,5% of respondents. No differences in respondents ratio can be attributed to gender partitioning.
Respondents are generally low educated, with a 43,6% illiterate and only 31,2% speaking Portuguese, in addition to the "Shangana" language.
The notable identi ed unemployment rate (with a 41% of respondents) is relatively higher within the Park (49%) than in Massingir town (31%).
The data on the adopted housing solutions (Fig. 2) provide a good re ection of the socio-economic situation, with up to 68% of respondents living in "palhota" (local name indicating rudimentary huts). Only 8% lives in conventional houses (single-family housing units, built with durable materials), while the remaining 24% adopts other types of housing solutions, which include: apartments, mixed houses (partly built with durable material and partly with plant material), "comboio" (shared room), common houses (single family housing units, built with durable materials), and temporary houses. When comparing Massingir to villages inside the park, the presence of conventional houses within the town (15,4%) is signi cantly higher than in the villages (1,2%); conversely palhota, which represent 77,3% of the homes of village respondents, fell to 56,7% in the urban area. Figure 2. Housing solutions adopted in Massingir town and in the villages inside the Park As to the energy supplies, 100% of respondents relies on rewood for housing services (cooking, heating, lighting), while only 4% has electricity at home, which are all concentrated in Massingir town.
Finally, as to water supply ( Fig. 3), only 2% of respondents has running water directly inside the house, while around 20% relies on water stored in tanks. 45% of the respondents relies on manual boreholes and hand pumps, while 32% relies on natural water sources as rivers, streams, and ponds.
When comparing the villages to Massingir town, running water is exclusively present in the latter. 5,5% of the Massingir respondents has access to running water, whereas the majority of them rely on hand-pumps (50,7%), less on manual boreholes (20,4%) or stored water supply (21,4%). Only 2% of the interviewees of the town relies on natural water sources. In the villages, around 57% of respondents depends on natural water sources, while 24,3% adopts water pumping systems. The remaining 18,6% of the population interviewed inside the Park relies on water supplies stored in tanks.  All the species in the list are native to Mozambique, with the exceptions of Sarcostemma viminale, Jatropha zeyheri and Dicerocaryum eriocarpum, which have been included being native to the Limpopo Basin area. No species is endemic to Mozambique. More than half (57) of the included species have a distribution limited to Southern and South-eastern Africa, fteen of which can be considered as "near-endemic" for the Country: Aloe marlothii, Ozoroa engleri, Adenium multi orum, Stylochiton natalensis, Balanites maughamii, Warburgia salutaris, Cadaba natalensis, Androstachys johnsonii, Euphorbia cooperi, Jatropha zeyheri, Synadenium cupulare, Guibourtia conjugata, Acridocarpus angolensis, Hermannia micropetala and Grewia hexamita.
The general framework on the local use of plants which emerged from the ethnobotanical survey is shown in Fig. 4. Most of the identi ed plants are used for medicinal purposes: about 94% of the species is used in treatments or remedies for various pathologies (classi ed under "medicine" in Tab.1). Around 14% of the species is used for livestock care ("veterinary"), especially for goats and cattle. An extensive use of the species is directed to "food": 44,1% of the species is used for the preparation of food and drinks or as a subsistence resource. 8,8% of the species is used for personal care ("cosmetic"). Around 13% of the species is used to produce various types of tools, including fences or parts of housing ("handicraft"). Only 4,9% of the species is used as "fuel". Finally, a signi cant 35% or so of the species is associated to local beliefs or mystical rituals ("beliefs").
Four plants species are associated to the greatest variety of use: Adansonia digitata, Boscia albitrunca (5 different uses), Elaeodendron schlechterianum and Euclea divinorum (6 different uses). The species that have the greatest number of parts exploited, are 3: Adansonia digitata,Asparagus africanus and Sclerocarya birrea. For all these three species, 6 parts are used in various sectors. Twelve species are used as a treatment for malaria or for alleviating its symptoms: Carissa edulis, Cassia abbreviata, Colophospermum mopane, Commiphora africana, Pterocarpus angolensis,Warburgia salutaris and Senna petersiana as a treatment; Blepharis diversispina, Combretum apiculatum, Sansevieria hyacinthoides and Ximenia caffra only to relive its symptoms; Trichilia emetica as a preventive of the disease.
No species is used to treat patients with meningitis nor HIV.
A number of traditional medical uses additional to those for the disease indicated by the WHO, have also been recorded (Tab. 2).

Discussion
Page 13/20 The GR identi ed through our ethnobotanical survey could have an important commercial potential. Albeit the major number of traditionally utilized species is associated to the medical and the food sectors, also a few species are worth consideration in the cosmetic sector. The signi cant number of species traditionally used in the medicinal sector and in the food sector, corroborates the merit to set up research and development projects focusing on them, within the framework of ABS measures. This consideration is supported by previous ABS experiences, which led to agreements between ILCs and research centres, speci cally related to the access to GR with medical potential. The articulated TK uses identi ed in our investigation can provide a useful refence case for further investigations on the commercial potential of Mozambique plant GR and their bearing on local the development of local communities. An effective follow up to our assessment of the potential viability of ABS projects in Mozambique could be a eld survey aimed at evaluating the available stock of plants, and an accurate biochemical analysis for identifying the compounds and active ingredients of the species in the list with medical potential.
The socio-economical survey of Limpopo National Park's ILCs underscores the precariousness of the housing solutions in the area and highlights some criticalities in the living condition of these communities which depend on limited sources of livelihood and poor housing conditions, and face di culties with water supply. The results of the present work appear overall consistent with the 2007 census, reported by Ministério da Administraçao Estatal [25], according to which rudimental mixed house (61,6%) and palhota (30,1%) are the most widespread housing solutions. Some comparative differences with our results could be explained by the signi cant inclusion in the census of urban areas data, whereas our investigation includes primarily rural areas. Similarly, also for water supply and the availability of electricity in homes, our results are in line with the 2007 census, con rming the access to basic services is extremely limited in the study area. Moreover, the recorded high unemployment rate indicates a signi cant dearth of economic income for the community. The lack of economic alternatives is more critical for the "poor" and "very poor" social classes, which occasionally resort to sale the extra livestock and alcoholic beverages and/or to undertake casual labour jobs. Also for "middle" and "better off" social classes, the sale of livestock is the rst economic option.
These classes are primarily engaged in small-scale trading activities, which is however limited by the conditions of their main costumers: the poorest social classes [13]. Finally, the socio-economic scenario of the Changana community is exacerbated by the effects of the relocation programme. For the above considerations, an ABS pilot project, set on plant species identi ed in this work, may represent an outlet for the economy development of the such community.
Furthermore, considering the conservation status and the limited geographical distributional range of a number of the species in the list, the design and implementation of an ABS project in the LNP could also contribute to biodiversity conservation. Indeed, the ABS provisions for the use of GR include aspects of natural resources management which contribute to the sustainable use of biological diversity and its conservation [8]. In this regard, links between the bene ts derived from the utilization of GR and the conservation of biodiversity are evoked in the NP, which establishes the obligation to direct a part of the bene ts arising from the use of GR towards the conservation of biological diversity [5]. Moving to our list, such sustainable management and conservation of GR elements could play a crucial role toward the preservation of three species: Dalbergia melanoxylon, Ansellia africana and Warburgia salutaris, which in The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species [19] are respectively classi ed as "near threatened" [41], "vulnerable" [10] and "endangered" [18].
Although our work supports the Mozambique eligibility for ABS projects, the current domestic policy needs to be revised. Mozambique adopted its ABS regulation in 2007, the Regulation sobre Acesso e Partilha de Bene cios Provenientes de Recursos Genéticos e Conhecimento Tradicional Associado. Such a Regulation aims to establish rules governing the access to, and the protection of GR and of the associated TK, to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and, leading to fair and equitable sharing of bene t arising from their use [3]. Nevertheless, considering the recommendation of the Interim National Report of the Implementation of the Nagoya Protocol [37], the Regulation must be urgently revised to align with the intention of the NP and to achieve an e cient ABS regime.

Conclusion
The outcomes of the present work support the contention that Mozambique has a signi cant eligibility potential for Access and Bene t Sharing projects. Additionally, they can contribute to the identi cation of a possible ABS pilot project as a case study to support the evaluation of the policy e cacy and the implementation of the NP in the Country. In particular, our work shows the potential of the LNP to support a pilot project which could lead to the conservation and sustainable use of local GR as well as contribute to the economic development of the relevant ILCs. With the above perspectives, the Country's ABS policy should be urgently revised to align with the provisions of the NP.