Unsustainable farming methods and the clearing of areas with a particularly high number of palm species are a threat to these plants.
The cross-disciplinary "Multipalms" project, which is being conducted in Ivory Coast, Benin and Ghana, aims to harness in-depth knowledge of the extraction processes used on three groups of useful forest palms (raffia, rattan and doum) to come up with sustainable agro-ecological solutions (propagation, nurseries, domestication) for the active conservation of these often over-exploited species and their natural environments, which are severely threatened by deforestation and drainage.
It aims to federate the efforts of local universities and botanical gardens for the benefit of biodiversity conservation, harvesters, growers and artisans in a large-scale programme involving germplasm harvesting, cultivation and distribution.
The long-term goal of the project is to provide farmers, associations, NGOs, botanical gardens, forestry services and managers of parks, reserves and classified forests with palm seedlings for reforestation, development, agroforestry, rehabilitation of degraded areas and environmental education operations. The project will also develop germination and propagation techniques for use with these palm trees. In addition, Multipalms places great emphasis on training young people to become the next generation of scientists.
