44 | Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) Report

Table 2-6. Red List category summary subregion totals of CWANA plants and animals.

North
Africa

Nile Valley
and Red Sea

Arabian
Peninsula

Southwest
Asia

Central Asia
and Caucasus

Total

Plants

Extinct and extinct in
the wild

0

6

0

0

0

6

Threatened species

6

197

7

7

5

221

Lower risk

27

222

9

97

43

398

Total

33

425

16

104

48

625

Animals

Extinct and extinct in
the wild

7

4

3

4

0

18

Threatened species

267

233

197

512

201

1410

Lower risk

2,831

3,833

2,067

4,673

2,176

15,580

Total

3,105

4,070

2,267

5,189

2,377

17,008

Source: IUCN, 2008.

sponsible for migration of local communities, desertification and increasing mass poverty. It is difficult to separate those social factors causing habitat degradation from economic ones, since they are interrelated and have similar consequences. Important ones for Turkey are its location, agricultural activities, overexploitation of natural resources, population growth, large populations living close to natural resources, unregulated and overgrazing of pastures and high meadows, forest and stubble fires and incomplete cadastral works for determining ownership of land (Kaya, 2003). Overgrazing and extensive woodcutting, in addition to intensive agricultural practices, have caused a major threat to wildlife in Jordan by destroying natural habitat. Despite the economic importance of mining in Jordan, unplanned mining and quarrying can also destroy habitat (http://www .biodiv.org/reports/).

2.1.7.4 Market prospects and consumer preferences

The change in consumer and market demand and the loss of interest in some by-products of local cultivars is contributory to agrobiodiversity loss. When farmers become integrated into the market economy, they change from landraces or local cultivars to crops and fruits with higher production. The market demand for uniform varieties suitable for industrial processing is another cause for decrease in farming local varieties. However, landraces are often better suited for organic farming. Therefore, there is an increased market for some landraces (Tan, 2002).

The market for medicinal, aromatic and ornamental, species and traditional edible wild plants for food is high, with attractive prospects for the national market and for export. This creates options for additional income for the low-income rural population. In Turkey, there is a long tradition of eating edible wild plants. A recent study on wild medicinal plants of Turkey identified 346 taxa of commercially traded wild native plants. For households, many medicinal, aromatic and ornamental species are underpriced and overexploited. Villagers generally sell products without

 

processing; the added value is captured elsewhere. Where resources are undervalued, prices or policy corrections could have an immediate beneficial effect (Ozhatay et al., 1997). To avoid overexploitation, some countries have legislation especially related to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) or a related project. For example, Turkey has its Regulation on the Collection, Production and Export of Wild Flower Bulbs (http://rega.basbakanlik.gov.tr).

Enhancing the multiple uses of underutilized species: case study 1. Various projects in the region are ongoing. For example, a pilot project in Syria aims to assess socioeconomic aspects related to producing and marketing selected neglected and underutilized species and shed light on challenges and opportunities in the economic exploitation of these species. The study looks at the market channel and product development of neglected species to identify the causes limiting their full deployment, along with the needs for their sustainable use. This investigation concentrates attention on actions to promote production, processing and marketing. It focuses on the needs of rural communities, where these species can become valuable in enhancing income generation (www.bioversityinternational.org).

Azraq Oasis, wetland reserve, Jordan: case study 2. The Azraq Oasis is located in Jordan's eastern desert near the border with Iraq. It once supported a rich biodiversity and was a stopover for hundreds of thousands of migrating birds. But increasing demand for water in the greater Amman area led to large-scale pumping of the Azraq Basin in recent decades. By 1993, after more than 20 years of intensive extraction, the underground springs giving life to the oasis had dried completely. Today, the Azraq ("blue" in Arabic) wetlands are experiencing a remarkable recovery thanks to a multifaceted project cofinanced and managed by UNDP, in its capacity as an implementing agency for the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Other partners include vari-