Consumption and direct-use values of savanna bio-resources used by rural households in Mametja, a semi-arid area of Limpopo province, South Africa.

Household consumption and direct-use values of a range of savanna bio-resources were quantified for 110 households across three villages in the Mametja Traditional Authority, Limpopo province, South Africa. The relationship between household wealth status and use of natural resources was also assessed. We found that the use of natural resources was extensive, the most common being wooden utensils, grass handbrooms, twig handbrooms, fuelwood, wild herbs, wild fruit and edible insects. Households in the poorest of the three villages consumed the most wooden utensils, wild herbs, wild fruit and thatching grass. Fuelwood was widely used, even though two of the three villages had electricity, and consumption was highest in the largest, most developed village. The mean annual direct-use value of indigenous bio-resources, averaged across all households, was R3959 per household or R564 per person. The value was highest in the poorest of the three villages. Poor households relied most heavily on 'essential' natural resources such as wild foods, whereas comparatively wealthy households used a wider range of resources and utilized greater amounts of 'luxury' items, such as wooden utensils and poles. These findings are discussed in the context of poverty and sustainable rural development, and should be of value to scientists, community developers, and policy-makers.