Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

This thesis explores the governance structures surrounding honeybush (Cyclopia spp.) and their impact on local access to this resource within a community of honeybush wild harvesters and traditional knowledge holders in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Native to South Africa, honeybush has gained international commercial significance over the last three decades for its health benefits. Through interviews with local leaders, traditional knowledge holders, and other stakeholders involved in the honeybush supply chain, and drawing from Ribot and Peluso’s (2003) ‘Theory of Access’, the study analyses the mechanisms shaping the community’s ability to benefit from the commercialization of the resource. The findings reveal the community’s marginal inclusion in the honeybush supply chain and shed light on the unequal access to and distribution of resources in post-apartheid South Africa. Current tensions and competition between the local traditional authority and democratic institutions, as well as within the traditional authority, generate unclear governance arrangements, further hindering community members’ participation in the commercial use of the resource. A comparison with other cases of biotrade in South Africa reveals that such tensions are a common issue for natural resource governance in the country. In light of these findings, the thesis discusses the potential of the measures proposed in the South African National Biodiversity Economy Strategy to address these challenges and effectively incorporate marginalized communities into the development of a biodiversity economy, based on equitable access and benefit sharing within the sector.