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Projeto de investigação
Challenges, sources and solutions for resource curse hypothesis in sub saharan africa: an empirical study
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Mechanisms implemented for the sustainable development of agriculture: an overview of Cabo Verde performance
Publication . Varela, Danilson; Monteiro, Filipa; Vidigal, Patrícia; Silva, Luís; Romeiras, Maria M.
In 2005, the Economic Community ofWest African States (ECOWAS) adopted the Common
Agricultural Policy of ECOWAS (ECOWAP), as an instrument for implementing the Comprehensive
Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP). The main goals of ECOWAP/CAADP were
set to promote agriculture development and end hunger by 2025. In this study we focused on the
Cabo Verde archipelago as one of the best performing countries within ECOWAS in terms of overall
sustainable development. In this paper, the evolution of the ECOWAP implementation and of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) associated with agriculture in Cabo Verde, were assessed by
semi-quantitative (e.g., agricultural policies, agrarian periodical literature) and quantitative (modeling
regression of ECOWAP implementation and Sustainable Development Goals—SDGs—performance)
analyses. Our integrated results suggest that the agriculture development strategies, the signature of
ECOWAP/CAADP by the national government, and political stability might explain the progress
made towards poverty reduction and the improvement of food security. The results also show that
agriculture-related SDGs in Cabo Verde are higher than the mean values obtained from the remaining
West African countries, well above the top 25% WA countries. Nevertheless, Cabo Verde public
expenditure into agriculture under the ECOWAP was generally below the targeted 10% of the national
budget, with food import required to meet internal food demands
Implications of climate change on the distribution and conservation of Cabo Verde endemic trees
Publication . Varela, Danilson; Romeiras, Maria M.; Silva, Luís
Climate change is one of the most significant challenges to biodiversity conservation, particularly
in dry tropical islands, such as the Cabo Verde archipelago where only three endemic tree taxa
occur – Dracaena draco subsp. caboverdeana, Phoenix atlantica and Sideroxylon marginatum – all
classified as threatened. The main goal of this study was to predict the possible shifts in the
climatically suitable habitat ranges for Cabo Verdean endemic tree species under different climate
change scenarios. We applied species distribution models (SDMs) to the available occurrence
data, and projected the distribution of the three taxa for 2050 and 2080, according to the expected
climate change scenarios. The best models were obtained using the Random Forest algorithm;
they showed that, by 2080, the suitable habitat for Dracaena draco subsp. caboverdeana
and Sideroxylon marginatum will have decreased by 28% and 34%, respectively; conversely, the
suitable habitat will have increased by 59% for Phoenix atlantica, the taxon best adapted to arid
conditions. Additionally, Santo Ant˜ao is the island where endangered trees are more encompassed
by protected areas. Overall, this study contributed with new integrated data to support the design
and implementation of a strategic plan to promote the conservation and ecological value of Cabo
Verde endemic trees in this climatically vulnerable country
Diversity and biological activities of medicinal plants of Santiago island (Cabo Verde)
Publication . Romeiras, Maria M.; Essoh, Anyse P.; Catarino, Sílvia; Silva, Joceline; Lima, Katelene; Varela, Eromise; Moura, Mónica; Gomesi, Isildo; Duarte, Maria Cristina; Duarte, Maria Paula
Plants continue to constitute key elements of medical practice in West African countries. The
Cabo Verde archipelago hosts a great diversity of medicinal plants and local markets are
considered important sites for trading plants harvested by rural communities. This study has two
main goals: (i) to assess the medicinal uses of native species in Santiago, the biggest island of the
archipelago, and (ii) to evaluate the antioxidant, antimicrobial and antidiabetic/antihyperglycemic activities of two native trees (Tamarix senegalensis and Sideroxylon marginatum)
used in traditional medicine and traded in local markets. Our results revealed that on Santiago
Island, 24 native plants are used in traditional medicine. The main uses of these species (e.g.,
forage, timber, food and fibres), their medicinal applications, the plant parts used, their mode of
administration and conservation status are presented here for the first time. Moreover, the
pharmacological characterization of two native tree species revealed that hydroethanolic extracts
were richer in phenolic compounds and more active than their aqueous counterparts. All the
studied extracts revealed significant antioxidant properties (DPPH and FRAP assays) and were
generally moderately active against Gram-positive bacteria. All the extracts inhibited the activities of the carbohydrate digestive enzymes α-glucosidase and α-amylase in a dose-dependent
manner. For α-glucosidase, the detected inhibitory activity (IC50 values from 2.0 ± 0.2 μg/mL
Present and future distribution of Faidherbia albida in Cabo Verde as revealed by climatic modelling and LULC analysis
Publication . Varela, Danilson; Romeiras, Maria M.; Silva, Luís
Climate change poses one of the most significant challenges to conserve
biodiversity, especially in tropical dry islands, as is the case of Cabo Verde
(northeast Atlantic Ocean). This archipelago has a low percentage of forest cover
and hosts only seven native tree species, among them, Faidherbia albida (Delile)
A.Chev. (Fabaceae). Therefore, protective afforestation is extremely important in
Cabo Verde, one of the most vulnerable West African countries to climate change.
With this work, we aimed to estimate the current distribution and potential shifts
in suitable areas for F. albida under climate change, using species distribution
models (i.e., random forest, generalized linear and additive models), covering its
distribution range in Cabo Verde and mainland Africa. The best model was then
projected for the studied area, at two different slice times, using Representative
Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios. Based on current bioclimatic
variables, we estimated that almost two thirds of Cabo Verde’s territory is highly
suitable for F. albida, which contrasts with its current occurrence. By overlaying
the present habitat suitability with land use and land cover data, we concluded
that habitat availability and suitability could be constrained by that factor. On
average, the predicted suitable habitat for future distributions gradually decreases
by 2080 under both scenarios compared with the current, with a smaller effect
of RCP4.5 than of RCP8.5. Local authorities can benefit from this research and
develop actions to promote sustainable reforestation in Cabo Verde, which
should include native tree species that are best adapted to the local climate and
could thus contribute to mitigate the effects of climate change.
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Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
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SFRH/BD/135354/2017