Diversity and prioritization of non timber forest products for economic valuation in Benin (West Africa)

Species prioritization is a crucial step towards setting valuation strategy, especially for Non timber Forest Products (NTFP). This study aimed at assessing the diversity and ranking NTFPs for a successful economic valuation. Data were collected through literature review. Seven prioritization criteria were used in different prioritization systems. The top 50 NTFP species obtained by each system were identified and ten NTFP of highest priority occurring as priority across methods were selected. A total of 121 NTFPs belonging to 90 botanical genera and 38 botanical families were found. The top 10 priority were: Vitellaria paradoxa, Parkia biglobosa, Adansonia digitata, Irvingia gabonensis, Blighia sapida, Tamarindus indica, Dialium guineense, Vitex doniana, Borassus aethiopum and Garcinia kola. Due to the economic potential and the regional importance of these priority species, appropriate incentives for their valuation are needed and should be reflected in forest policies in Benin.