Lokina, Razack B.
Description:
Community participation in forest management has existed in the United Republic of Tanzania
for a long time, but on a small scale. It is common to find trees of certain species are being
protected and managed for traditional reasons. It has been observed that forests and woodlands
that are managed using traditional knowledge and practices are accorded high respect by
concerned communities. Thus, fires or encroachment does not affect them. While the strategy of
setting aside forests and woodlands for protection remains the centerpiece of management of
these resources in the United Republic of Tanzania, this has been the result of evolutionary
process from a conventional to a participatory approach of forest management. In this regards,
Tanzania has been considered among successful countries in African in implementing
Participatory Forest Management (PFM) as promoted through both Community-Based Forest
Management (CBFM) and Joint Forest Management (JFM). Policy provisions and legal
framework has been important stepping stones for involvement of different players in forest
conservation. In addition, legal reforms have tried to invert the colonial approach that excluded
local communities from management and ownership of most resources in their vicinity. PFM
typically has been implemented on a forest-by-forest or village-by-village basis, rather than
using a landscape approach. But protecting one forest through PFM may displace villagers’ Non
Timber Forest Product (NTFP) harvest into other less protected forests, possibly causing greater
ecological damage. A landscape approach to PFM would take into account even those forests
that are not used by villagers before PFM is introduced but that might be once PFM reduces or
eliminates access to alternative forests.