Since the early 1980s, the National Institute of Development Research and Documentation has initiated and promoted research on sound harvesting and management of renewable natural resources. However, there is less comprehensive research on some resources such as the Phane caterpillar/worm which is an example of a veld product that is being highly commercialised (Moruakgomo, 1996).

This project seeks to provide information about the ecology and responsiveness to use of phane and mophane woodlands, with a view to informing communities on the the best options to sustainably utilise these natural resources. To provide reliable information towards sustainable use of Phane and the host Mophane woodland, there is need to set up multi-dimension studies with sufficient time and spatial scale at various sites in the Mophane vegetation area of Botswana.

As part of the long-term research programme on environmental and natural resources, this project is expected to have benefits such as improvement in community based management, conservation and monitoring techniques for both phane and mophane woodland resources, a well informed and empowered community and an existence of a Policy on Phane, other veld products and woodland resources in Botswana or availability of reliable information for its formulation.