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HOW PROTECTING AND MANAGING COMMUNITY FORESTS IN EASTERN NEPAL HAS CONTRIBUTED TO ACHIEVING THE MDGS
By Bernd-Markus Liss and Wibke Thies
The history
The Churia hills rise along almost the entire length of the Himalayan range in Nepal , up to an altitude of 1,000 m. They used to be densely forested, but over-exploitation and agriculture have forced the forests back.
For decades, people have been migrating to the Terai plains south of the Churia hills. They flee to this fertile area to escape the poverty in other parts of Nepal and even in India . With a growing population, however, land is becoming scarce. More and more people are settling on the slopes of the Churia hills, clearing the forest, cutting firewood and gathering non-timber forest products. The forest ecosystem has long been under excessive strain. The result is soil degradation and flooding, a declining water table, and poor harvests. As impoverishment grows, pressure on the forest’s remaining resources further increases and a vicious circle emerges leading to even greater levels of poverty.
The project
In 1992, the German government initiated the Churia Forest Development Project (ChFDP) jointly with the government of Nepal and the inhabitants of the three poorest districts in the area (Siraha, Saptari and Udayapur). The goal of the project was to restore the ecological balance of the Churia hills as a basis for improving local livelihoods. For the first time in this area, forest protection was clearly linked to poverty reduction. To restore the ecological equilibrium of the Churia forests and to generate benefits for the people the following steps were successfully taken:
The project was implemented by the Nepalese Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation with the German consulting firms GOPA and APEG. Commissioned by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), technical assistance was provided by German Development Cooperation (GTZ). The project became fully operational in 1995 and ended in 2005, when sole responsibility for implementation was transferred to local communities.
Before the project started, forest settlers or users were expelled by the authorities. Today, Nepal ’s new forest policy legalises and promotes the forest user groups, which are officially registered as the owners of the forest. The project helped them select usable areas, survey the community forest and produce a management plan. For the first time people have the right to manage parts of their forest independently and can benefit from the opportunity to improve their economic situation.
Project achievements and their contribution to specific MDGs
Most of the project’s achievements contribute directly to MDGs 1 and 7 (eradicating extreme poverty and hunger and ensuring environmental sustainability). However, by using the new income from the community forests the forest user groups contribute – indirectly but very impressively – to achieving other MDGs, such as MDG 2 (achieving universal primary education), MDGs 4 and 5 (reducing child mortality and improving maternal health). Furthermore, the new democratic structures established within user groups have contributed to MDG 3 (promotion of gender equality) and to reaching overall good governance in the area. Some of the project’s key achievements are outlined in more detail below.
By the end of the project almost 50% of the population living in the three districts had experienced its benefits at some level – more than half of those impacted were women. 62,000 households have taken part in one or more forest user groups – the total number of which is over 350. 309 community forests covering a total of 54,000 hectares have been handed over, with rights of use transferred to local communities. To date, forest users have attained an income of more than US$500,000 from their community forestry activities.
Forest user groups have re-invested most of this income in local development projects, including literacy programmes for women and the poor, grants for poor school pupils, construction of schools, village roads and drinking water facilities, as well as medical care and hygiene. 25% of the total income from forests (US$120,000) has been deposited in saving accounts.
As a result of the project, user groups created 953 new full-time jobs for teachers, forest workers, craft workers and employees in small enterprises. 12,000 temporary jobs have been created in agriculture, forestry and the construction of infrastructure. Women occupy 41% of the new full-time and 27% of the temporary jobs.
Livelihoods, especially those of the communities’ poorest members, have improved greatly. Many user groups dedicate up to 20% of their income to development projects for households that were formerly excluded from any form of decision making. About 24,000 households participate in the savings and credit programme with women accounting for more than 90% of all participants. Savings totalling more than US$500,000 have been accrued with a credit investment of close to US$10 million in a wide range of income generating opportunities to reduce pressure on forests and improve living standards. The savings and credit programme has significantly improved food security in around 80% of the households covered by the programme, securing food supply for two to six months longer per year than before.
Today, more than 30% of the forested area in the three districts is protected and managed on a sustainable basis by user groups. Furthermore, about 50% of all the degraded areas have been regenerated through the hard work of user groups and are now managed at a profit. With the recovery of the forests, biodiversity is returning and rare plants and animals that had not been seen for a long time can be observed again.
As a result of the project, democratic structures have been established. All stakeholders decide jointly on the use of natural resources which has strengthened individual and community self-confidence. Today, the user groups are well accepted and benefit from improved access to information, services and training. Women in particular are benefiting from the new democratic culture. Formerly, they were not involved in decision making. Today, they account for one quarter of the board members of all user groups. Furthermore, 136 women from user groups have been elected to leading posts in the village and district development committees.
The user groups uphold a local level democratic culture and are regarded as the seeds to recultivate democracy once the country has overcome its internal crisis. In this regard, the Federation of Community Forest User Groups of Nepal (FECOFUN), has become an important political player as an umbrella organisation for more than 14,000 user groups throughout the country.
Further information:
Dr. Bernd-Markus Liss
AGEG Consultants eG
Jesinger Strasse 52
D - 73230 Kirchheim unter Teck
Germany
Email: bm.liss@ageg.de
Website: http://www.ageg.de
Dr. Wibke Thies
Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH
Postfach 5180
D-65726 Eschborn
Germany
Email: wibke.thies@gtz.de
Website: http://www.gtz.de/forest-policy