The case of the FORGOTTEN STAKEHOLDERS of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda

Presented by: Stephen Asuma, IGCP1

Views of local commercial users of forest resources on creation of national parks,

DISCLAIMER

The information presented here is not a position of IGCP or Stephen Asuma,

BUT

A COMPILATION OF THE LIFE HISTORIES OF THE RESPONDENTS!

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Presentation outline

Context:

Reasons and Implications of creation of the park

My study: Perceptions of commercial resource users:

Background

Aim

Method

Findings

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Local community use of Bwindi forest before 1991

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Causes and implications of creation of the park

Reasons Implications

Protecting biodiversity and habitat for endangered and threatened spp

Securing water catchment

Wanton destruction by pitsawers

Restriction on community access to Forest pdcts

Loss of income and employment

Feeling of lack of ownership

Violent resistance by community members

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Integrated Conservation and Development Programmes

1987 – conservation education and woodlot programme

1989 – agroforestry and agriculture

1993 – gorilla tourism and tourism-based enterprise

1993 – participatory management planning and ‘multiple use’ (resource sharing) programme

1996 – Bwindi and Mgahinga Conservation Trust

1996 –tourism revenue sharing

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BINP-Revenue sharing fund releases,1996-2012

0

100000000

200000000

300000000

400000000

500000000

600000000

700000000

1996 2002 2006 2007 2009 2012

79,000,000 88,755,000114,218,700 107,000,000

389,004,000

661,774,810

Observed trends

+ve attitude change

support for park management

57

79

238228

314

32

411

345

293

381

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100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

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No. of snares

Bamboo

Firewood

Fishing

Grazing

Wildhoney

Hunting

pole cutting

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Study Background

aim: establish the impact of creation of BINP on local commercial users of forest resources.

• life before gazzettement

• costs incurred on gazettement

• how they responded

• if engaged in ICDPs.

goal:

1. Improve ICDP

2. recommendations for conservation policy and practice.

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Hypotheses

Commercial resource harvesters perceived negative livelihood impacts of National Park gazettement.

Commercial resource harvesters feel animosity towards the management of Bwindi park.

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Methodology

Qualitative approach

Compiling individual experiences

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Methodology

•Respondents from two parishes i.e. Mukono and Rubuguli .

•Used random sample generator in Excel.

•three time scales:

• before park gazettement

• Within 5 years after park gazettement

• 2012

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Results

Profiles:

All belong to the same tribe

Timber cutters and gold miners were more likely not to be educated

Gold miners included educated people

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“Teachers were resigning to join gold mining business. Even my brother the catholic catechist

would sneak to mine”- John,63yrs

The fellows are family and kin!

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Who inducted them into the trades?

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family and kinship

influence46%

financial capacity

9%

foreign influence

4%

friends and peer influence

4%

friends and peers29%

trained in the trade

8%

The main drivers

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‘These were the only jobs available for uneducated people like me'- John 60 yrs,

Low levels of

education

lack of alternative sources of

income

opportunity for quick money

Life before gazettement

“Life was good, I was able to pay dowry & provide hh needs”

“Income was daily and enough”

“I was respected by the community. I employed about 100 people”-

“I was better paid than teachers, government workers and clergymen”- John Tindikahwa

Invested and acquired property

Easy and quick money- took kids off school

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Impact on household income

“I lost much money in timber cutting because I had paid for 70 trees, but did not claim the money”-John Tindikahwa, Timber trader, Rubuguli

“I had just renewed my timber licence and when I tried to go to the park to cut the trees on my license, my tools and some of the staff were arrested"-Leo Byarugaba, Timber trader, Mukono

“It was unexpected. My prospecting license was still running. It was strange but true"-Aloysious, Gold miner, Rubuguli

not much

9%

reduced hh

income86%

others5%

Impact of gazettement on livelihood

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Results

Timber cutters and gold miners

seemed to have taken the biggest hit

seemed to have lost glory

Timber and Gold traders:

have some influence in society

seemed to have adapted better

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Results

Group not target with ICDs.

No specific engagement in park management decision making

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Impacts of gazzettement

•But for the general community

•Disappointment and anguish-mainly TCs and GMs

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2

4

6

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betternow

same worsenow

Comparison of state of households before and after park gazzettement

Total

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Impacts of gazzettement

5%

91%

4%

As an after thought, was the gazzettement of the park good or

bad?

fairly good good very good

“but only for the educated and young"-Henry

“easy money made us not study. If it continued, our children would most likely not study too"-Cypriano

there would be no forest now. We would be growing beans there"-Bernard

Our eyes are now open, we plan for the future, we educate our children, people have built better houses"-John

" but people previously working in the forest were not given alternatives" -John Tindikahwa

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Coping strategies

Timber cutters & gold miners Timber & gold traders

Migration to continue trade

Digging and selling produce

Cutting timber on community land

Providing casual labor

Planting trees and now cutting timber on private land

Livestock rearing

Small businesses

Joined local politics

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Proposed remedial actions

1. Support with IGAs

2. Employment especially for their children

3. Scholarship for kids

4. Improvement in management of Revenue sharing programme

5. Create timber harvesting zones

6. Improved social services and infrastructure

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Conclusion1. The gazettement of Bwindi forest immensely

affected previous commercial forest resource users.

2. Second tier users coped better

3. Poorer households express a more negative attitude towards the park, compared with richer households.

4. Feeling of /actual ownership of a process is an important determinant of outcomes and trends

5. Interventions need to be well thought-out and contextualized

6. Benefits to communities surrounding PAs plays a big part in changing attitudes

7. Benefits(real or perceived) need to surpass costs25

Key take home Question

What is the role of ‘The forgotten stakeholders’ in effective management

of BINP?

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Hey, where will the kids

go, if our cousins

decide to plant beans

here?

Thanks for Your Interest

DISCLAIMER

The views presented here are not of IGCP or Stephen Asuma,

BUT

A COMPILATION OF THE LIFE HISTORIES OF

‘THE FORGOTTEN STAKEHOLDERS’!

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