AEGIS ECAS 2007 - View abstract

Panel	26. Decentralising power and natural resource control: responses and perspectives
Paper ID	388
Author(s)	Vihemãki, Heini Maria
Paper	No paper submitted
Abstract	This presentation discusses some of the challenges facing participatory governance of protected forests in Tanzanian context. How we could enhance the legitimacy of such policies and their implementation especially from the perspective of civil society? The concepts of participation, community as well as empowerment are nowadays widely used in policy arenas internationally nationally. How are these ideas turned into practices, and how are they changing the relationship between state and civil society, in different contexts? Recent studies on social and political aspects of forest conservation in various parts of the Tropics suggest that there is need to explore more closely their implementation and governance aspects, including the global and local power dynamics, and unexpected and expected outcomes of diverse participatory governance systems. They may (gradually) alter local power relations and forms of resource control or, in some cases, help to maintain them. Often, previous institutional forms of resource control and forest governance may continue to have effect in practice despite the changes in discourse, policies and strategies. This presentation explores contestations over ‘participatory’ conservation and changing roles of different actors in it in the context of a conservation initiative in the East Usambaras in North-East Tanzania. As part of the Eastern Arc Mountains, this forested area is considered among the 25 bio-diversity hotspots of the world and received much interest from the side of the conservationists as well as donors. I analyse the forms of inclusion and/or exclusion of the people living in the area from the conservation process of so-called Derema Corridor. The materials used for the analysis include interviews of different actors (both thematic and semi-structured) conducted mainly in the study area during two field work periods between 2003-2005, a small house hold survey (n=48), as well as relevant documents and literature. The findings suggests that the ways through which local and global interests towards the forest and their resources interact in the implementation of ‘participatory’ conservation lead to contestations and sometimes even conflicts between the diverse groups of actors, although open resistance in the communities is not common. Despite the fact that conservation thinking and policies have changed from the ‘top-down’ tradition and became more sensitive to livelihood needs and interests, the implementation facing several challenges. The problems are related to power imbalances between different actors, lack of commitment by the government (and sometimes donors too). These factors hinder or at least slow down the process of conservation practices becoming more inclusive to the local needs and enhancing legitimacy of conservation initiatives.

Contestations over local participation and resource control in the East Usambaras, Tanzania