the role of tourism in natural resource management in the okavango ...

different products, wood is perhaps the most important as most homes are built
largely of timber harvested from local trees, and the great majority of households
use wood as fuel, which is collected from dead trees. The sale of firewood alongside
roads in the Ngamiland District, particularly to camping tourists has increased greatly
over the past five years. Sleds and dug-out boats (mekoros) are also made from
pieces of wood or tree trunks (although mekoros are increasingly being made from
fibre-glass in the Delta), and other major uses of wood in the region are for fences,
furniture and craft production (Mendelsohn and el Obeid, 2004).
A large variety of trees and shrubs produce nuts and fruits that are consumed by the
inhabitants of the Okavango. In fact, a recent survey found that nuts and fruits from
between 35 and 50 different species were eaten in anyone area in and around the
Okavango Delta and Panhandle region. Most of these are taken only occasionally,
but others provide relatively large quantities of food. Mangetti (Schinziophyton
rautanenii) nuts are used on a large scale to brew an alcoholic drink called
kashipembe, and as a source of oil used cosmetically. The potential for producing
distilled and bottled liqueur and oil for the international cosmetics industry is now
being explored. The leaves of different wild spinach plants are consumed, as are
water lilies and various wild mushrooms. Many plants are also used for medicinal
purposes, with the healing properties of between 20 and 40 different species used in
anyone area (Mendelsohn and el Obeid, 2004).
Grass is used largely for grazing in the Ngamiland District, and some of the most
heavily stocked areas are badly overgrazed. Both grass and reeds are used in the
construction of huts, with most rural houses being thatched with grass and/or reeds,
while reeds are used extensively to make sleeping mats, walls, palisades and
fences. Both grass and reeds are also used for commercial purposes with grass
selling for approximately one to seven Pula per bundle, while reeds sell for around
five to ten Pula per bundle. Papyrus reed (Cyperus papyrus) is used extensively for
basketry, which is a popular vocation in the Panhandle area. These baskets are
tourist attractions and with assistance from Botswana Craft, these baskets are sold
both locally and overseas (Makhajwe et aI, 1995; Mendelsohn and el Obeid, 2004).
Table 7.9 provides a list of some of the more commonly used plant resources in the
Okavango Delta.
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