European Tropical Forest Research Network

Rehabilitation of degraded lands in Sub-Saharan Africa

Discussion summary: Current Status of Drylands in Sub-Saharan Africa: Sociological Perspectives

A number of inter-related sociological factors influence human activities in drylands. These include human population numbers and structure, poverty and associated mitigation strategies aimed at sustaining livelihoods. In the context of forestry, inhabitants of drylands depend on forest and woodland resources for a host of products and services including wood for cooking, water for humans and livestock, medicine, thatch- grass, crop and livestock production. Scarcity of these products and services has been associated with influx of human populations from areas of high agricultural potential, and change in land use practices from extensive pastoralism to sedentary agriculture. These changes have been claimed to induce accelerated land degradation, conflict in the management of common-pool and open access resources like grazing land and water points; gender disparities in ownership, control and user-rights on critical factors of production like land.

The livelihood bases of inhabitants of drylands have been claimed to worsen in terms of vulnerability, the scope and depth of poverty and constrained environmental resilience. A number of research issues emerge, such as:

1. What is the current trend in the demographic structure of dryland populations and what are the implications of the trend for sustainable management of dryland forests?
2. Indigenous populations have a belief that "trees attract rain". Is the claim that population increase leads to increased forest degradation valid?
3. What is the appropriate framework for livelihood analysis in the drylands?
4. What are the appropriate sociological interventions for establishing sustainable livelihoods systems in drylands through forestry?
5. What has been the effect and impact of chronic, transient, and absolute poverty to degradation of dryland forests and how can they be mitigated?
6. What types of changes are apparent in gender dimensions of forest resources management in drylands and what are the implications?

Concerning the appropriate sociological interventions for establishing sustainable livelihood systems in drylands through forestry some ideas for research and project implementation were presented. It was suggested that before the actual project intervention research should be done on the political and economical surroundings, sectoral policies (especially economic, land tenure and forestry), implementation of these policies and the culture. Especially by discussing with the people in an area, and by observation, it would be possible to learn about the factors affecting their environmental behaviour. By talking with the people also ecological information of the area could be acquired. A holistic approach to project implementation was suggested, for example a rural development project with a forestry component. The objectives and activities should be based on the priorities that women and men of the area have stated.

An example was given from Zimbabwe's Miombo woodlands on the reaction of communities and individuals to changing demographic and environmental structures. Although population pressure was the starting point of deforestation, effective management systems, developed by the people themselves, show that endogenous mechanisms of reaction do work, but certainly only to a critical point of "carrying capacity". Despite of the pressure to produce agricultural crops, people set apart a small portion of their arable land to plant fruit trees or Eucalyptus. This leads to a patchwork of small woodlots within arable land. Soil erosion and desertification effects can be effectively stopped while population needs for fuelwood, fruit, fodder, etc. are at least partially covered. It was therefore suggested, that the strategy of individualisation of forest produce supply should be encouraged, probably through provision of seedlings or fencing materials by official entities.

In the miombo woodlands of Zimbabwe the reaction to declining resources managed by the community was again increasing privatisation. While the formerly commonly managed woodlands more and more became an open access resource with all its negative consequences, individual households annexed woodland areas around their fields or homesteads, they even fenced these areas off and due to customary law, these areas became private property. The community woodland area was still "exploited", however the availability of individual resources diminished the pressure on it and natural regeneration processes could start. Negative about this strategy of annexation was, that rich farmers usually had the customary right to annex larger portions of land than poorer community members had.

The question about the roles of traditional and modern institutions in connection with woodland management was raised. The traditional set of institutions to manage natural resources (usually in a common property tenure regime) has developed over centuries. It has always been a co-evolution between population needs and ecological capacity. Therefore, these institutions are flexible and dynamic. During centuries of slow population growth these institutions could adapt to the changing situations and effectively govern the use of resources. However, in times of rapid population growth the traditional set of rules is overstrained. On the other side modern regulations and laws are hardly accepted by local communities, in case they are even known. In between these two institutional structures, a power vacuum evolves. It was therefore suggested that the possibility of individual management practices should be considered to be part of the woodland management approach.

It was further affirmed that the set of rules to manage the natural resources can not be constituted of traditional institutions, since they are too dynamic in times like these. On the other side modern legislation is too rough to refer to each single community's needs and problems. So a more flexible and regionalised legislation, which is open to traditional institutions' integration may be an answer to this. Communities are able to respond to changing conditions, however they need leadership, which guides them. What type of leadership this is can not be generalised. It depends on the set of rules, which has to be enforced and that this set of rules is able to meet the communities' needs. In many cases there is a lack of clear regional planning and if there is something like that, it is more the copy of a blueprint than really adapted to the regional demands and conditions. Especially in Africa with its small-scale spatial patterns of cultural and environmental as well as demographic and economic differences, such kind of regional planning must be the first step when it comes to develop substitution policies, incentive schemes, management strategies or devolving of powers. This of course needs intensive knowledge on the region, its natural resources and the communities' needs.