Recommended actions for rattan
development: conclusions
of the FAO Expert Consultation
on Rattan Development

The 23 experts from 16 countries convened at the Expert Consultation on Rattan Development, held in Rome from 5 to 7 December 2000, concluded that there are a wide variety of potential interventions that could assist the different stakeholder groups in the rattan sector. Raw material producers and smallholders could be assisted with incentives to manage local resources on a more sustainable and productive basis, through the establishment of community forest management practices, long-term concessions, local land-use planning and the provision of resource and/or land tenure rights, in conjunction with approved management plans.

For the rattan industry, needs are particularly great at the artisanal level. Potential interventions that might assist industry include improving entrepreneurship and competitiveness via the establishment of design centres, the training of advisers, improving post-harvest treatment and quality control, market deregulation, improved market information and trade fairs. In addition, given the nature of the resource users and the fact that the industry is generally on a cottage or small scale and frequently employs women, the handicapped and indigenous people, rattan products could become ideal commodities for promotion as rain-forest conservation products.

The meeting identified the following key actions, which should be initiated immediately for greater sustainability of the rattan supply.

Resources

• Intensification of ex situ and in situ conservation efforts in a more coordinated and organized manner among countries in the regions.
• Development of suitable methods for resource assessments, including studies on growth, yield, basic biology and taxonomy of rattan species.
• Improvement of techniques of enrichment planting and management of rattan in degraded forests, and wide dissemination of the available guidelines for rattan planting.

Products

• Research on the properties of commercial species and the potential of underutilized or less-known species.
• Improvement of technologies for reducing post-harvest losses and biological deterioration.
• Introduction of quality grading.

Policies and institutional support

• Awareness raising on the importance of the rattan sector to decision-makers at all levels.
• Institutional strengthening and coordination regarding rattan conservation, management and processing issues, including the promotion of more government and private sector cooperation and coordination to enhance the contribution of rattan for poverty alleviation and economic prosperity.
• Provision of tenure security to rattan gatherers and planters by incorporating them into community-based forest management schemes.
• Introduction of incentive schemes for rattan cultivation to increase the economic benefits for rural households and smallholder plantations in Asia, such as provision of credit and technical assistance for small-scale plantation development, and favourable harvesting and marketing arrangements.
• Market deregulation to benefit rattan collectors and traders (i.e. removal of transport barriers and export restrictions) and support for improved collection and dissemination of market information.
• Strengthening of extension support to local collector organizations on methods for reducing post-harvest losses, improving storage, and others as required.
• Provision of comprehensive training and support to local specialists in rattan producing countries in taxonomy, management and processing, complemented with twinning arrangements among relevant institutions in the regions.