*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fisndings v Affica Region * Number 8 * September 1996 Findinlgs Infobriefs reports on Best Practice in ongoing operational, economic and sector work carried out by the World Bank and its member governments in the Africa Region. It is published monthly by the Knowledge Networks, Information and Technology Center on behalf of the Region. N2/ueral{ResourcesM2n2tgelnenY 22101 Objectives: Participatory, community-based NRM Projects have been implemented over the last 5 to 6 years in Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger with the support of France, Germany, Norway, USA, and the World Bank's IDA facility. Furthermore, pilot operations concentrating on specific NRM issues are underway in Chad (pastoral perimeters) and Guinea (land tenure securement). Since 70 to 90 percent of the land in these countries is collectively owned, such projects are in fact trying to reinforce common property managenient systems, with the dual objective of alleviating poverty and improving the management of (crop) land, water, pasture, and forest resources. Impact on the ground: * Under NRM projects, local communities have rehabilitated village land through soil and water conservation measures (Burkina Faso and Mali), improved management of pasture (in Chad). and forest resources (in Niger, and in Houet and Bougouriba in Burkina Faso). Hundreds of thousands of hectares of agropastoral areas, savanna woodlands and grasslands which were formerly degraded by "open access" regimes are now being regenerated under effective common property management systems. e Community-based NRM projects have helped to resolve land use conflicts, both between farmers and herders within the commu- nity and between communities and outsiders. In Chad, for example, community-level decisions on livestock rotation have reduced the need for crop protection, and in Mali, local communities have been able to agree on the boundaries of their territory ("terroir") with neighboring communities; and have negotiated with transhumant pastoralists where livestock trails should be established. * NRM projects have potential not only for improving the management of collectively owned lands, but also of government-owned resources. For instance, in Burkina Faso and in Mali, local community involvement in biodiversity conservation in gazetted forests has led to a remarkable improvement in their management. Lessons learned: * With the proper institutional environment, rural communities can bring bottom-up solutions to land tenure and other natural resource management problems. * Governments should allow for innovative legal and regulatory measures suggested by local resource users to be tested in selected areas before proceeding to larger scale implementation. * Rather than heavy-handed state intervention, improved NRM requires governments to recognize and if necessary help enforce locally designed solutions e.g., where governments have officially acknowledged locally agreed boundaries between commu- nities, land tenure security has improved. * Successful local-level management of natural resources necessitates investment in community-level capacity building and empowerment in the areas of organization, financial and natural resource management. Experience shows that this usually requires more time than is allowed for in donor-supported projects. While community-based NRM must eventually become integrated into the key line agencies (agriculture, livestock, forestry, etc.), a dynamic National Program is necessary to facilitate the initial spread of the participatory methodologies involved, and their progressive adaptation to local circumstances. For more informatiin on this speif 3tudy or copies, contact P.C. MKhan, RmJ3-165, KnowIedge Netwlorks Infottiation ad Techniog -e World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington 3D., 20433. Tel. (202) 473-4114 or NTERNET at. pmohan@w, ddbank.org World Bank, An Integrated Approach to Water Resources Management: Strategy for Sub-Saharan Africa - A Concept Paper, 1995. Narendra Sharma, Rietbergen S., Heimo C., Patel J., A Strategy for the Forest Sector in Sub-Sharan Africa - World Bank Technical Paper # 251 (English and French), 1995. World Resources Institute, World Resources 1994-95, Oxford University Press, 1994. World Bank, Review of Implementation of the Forest Sector Policy, 1994. Someshwar, Capacity Building in World Bank - Supported Forestry Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa, AFTES Working Paper No. 6, World Bank, 1994. Rangeley, et. al., International River Basin Organization in Sub-Saharan Africa, World Bank Technical Paper 250, World Bank, 1994. Pratt, Best Practices in Range Management, AFTES Working Paper, World Bank, 1994, Jyoti Patel, Sharma N. and Rietbergen S., World Bank Experience in the Forest Sector in Sub-Sharan Africa, AFTES Working paper #7, World Bank, March 1994. Kathleen McNamara and Bradley P., Living with Trees: Zimbabwe Forestry Sector Review, World Bank, 1994. Kevin M. Cleaver, and Schreiber G.A., Reversing the Spiral: The Population, Agriculture, and Environment in Sub-Saharan Africa, World Bank, 1995 Dewees, Peter, Trees, Land and Labor, World Bank Environment Paper No. 4, 1993. Ishrat Z. Husain, Overview on Population, Environment, and Development, Africa Technical Department, Technical Working Paper No. 10, World Bank, 1993. S.E. Migot-Adholla and Bruce J.W., Searching for Land Tenure Security in Africa, Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 1993. World Bank, UNDP, ADB, French Ministry of Cooperation, The European Community, Sub-Saharan Africa Hydrological Assessment, 1993. World Bank, Water Resources Management, Policy Paper, 1993. UNEP, World Atlas of Desertification, Edward Arnold: London, 1992. Narendra Sharma, Managing the World's Forests: Looking for Balance Between Conservation and Development, Kendall-Hunt Publishing Company, 1992. World Bank, The Forest Sector, Policy Paper, 1991. UNDP, Capacity Buildingfor Water Resources Management, 1991. Mikael Grut, Gray J. and Egli N., Forest Pricing and Concession Policies: Managing the High Forests of West and Central Africa, World Bank Technical Paper No. 143, 1991. World Bank Operations Evaluation Department, Forestry: The World Bank's Experience, 1991. Ministere de la Cooperation, Memento de l'Agronome, 4th ed., France, 1991. FAO, 1988 Forest Products Yearbook, 1990. FAO, 1988 Agricultural Statistics Yearbook, 1990. World Bank, Water Supply and Sanitation in Africa: Laying the Foundation for the 1990s, Proceedings of all Africa Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Workshops and Water Supply and Sanitation Conference, Vol. I & II, 1990. Ministere de la Cooperation , Memento du Forestier, 3rd ed, France, 1989. Ridley Nelson, Dryland Management: The "Desertification" Problem, World Bank Technical Paper No. 116, 1989. Walter Lusigi and Nekby A., Dryland Management in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Search for Sustainable Development Options, AFTEN Working Paper, World Bank. FAO, Annual Forest Statistics. FAO, see documentation data. Wo1Ensdct' nepieNaNo,cnacs oeeape etPatc swl s~~omto ntewr oeb h Afi.R~in~?l u lRsuce tn ese yacsigteRei nsNtrlRsucsNl agmn -~ePg.T cest~i