Hassan Sher1, Jehangir Khan2, Kiramat Khan3, Hazrat Sher4, Muhammad Elyemeni1
Pakistan′s forest resource base is mostly found in the mountains of the NorthWest Frontier Province (NWFP) supporting the livelihood of the rural poor and providing different ecological services. The present study was, therefore, initiated with the aim to evaluate different constraints and opportunities for sustainable livelihoods and cash income generation from NTFPs in the mountainous area of NWFP, Pakistan during 2008. Information was collected through questionnaire and interviews during field trips. A total of 117 NTFPs species have been recorded which are being used locally for various purposes such as fuel wood, fodder, medicinal plants, vegetables, mushroom, agricultural tools making, furniture, thatching, shade, fencing/ poles, ornamental purpose and animal products. The majority of plants are multifunctional like Pinus wallichiana provides timber, firewood, torch wood, the leaves/small branches are used as thatch for roofing, split logs are used for fencing and the decomposed needles are collected as humus for agricultural fields. These products were widely used by the indigenous community supporting their livelihood. The study proposes protection and sustainable management of these valuable resources for rural livelihoods, which might be useful for developing regional strategies of sustainable management of forest resources.
