Community-based Forest Management Project And Effect On Women’s Livelihood. (Case Study Of Rudeya Forest Management Project In The Asunafo District Of Brong Ahafo Region, Ghana)

Community-based Forest Management Project And Effect On Women’s Livelihood. (Case Study Of Rudeya Forest Management Project In The Asunafo District Of Brong Ahafo Region, Ghana)

Chapiter 1

Introduction

1.1 The Study’s Background

At the global level, the difference in estimates of forest loss is less obvious but still significant. A NASA scientist named Elaine Matthiaws made an effort to estimate the world’s original forest cover based on climatically suitable locations and contrast it to the situation in 1970. The original cover had, in her estimation, lost 15% of its worth (Cleaver et al., 1992). According to Cleaver, between 133,000 and 245,000 square kilometers of tropical forest are lost worldwide each year. Surveys show that the rate of deforestation in developing nations has been rising. For instance, the average yearly deforestation rate in West Africa is 3.7 percent or higher (Harrison, 1992).

Danso and Opoku (2005) claim that a number of historical changes to Ghana’s forest sector governance have resulted in the marginalization and denial of benefits and rights to one of the industry’s key stakeholders, the fringe communities. According to the Forest and Wildfire Policy (1994), the Forest Commission is in charge of ensuring that forests are managed so that they offer “a constant flow of benefits to all segments of society.” The Collaborative Resource Management Unit (CRMU) of the Resource Management Support Centre of the Forestry Commission was established.

We are accountable for making sure that all parties involved in forest management share obligations, benefits, and liabilities. throughout order to ensure their efficiency, Community Forest Committees (CFCs), NTFP production and management, the establishment of a District Forestry Forum, and livelihoods depending on forests (such as boundary cleaning, Modified Taungya Systems, and others) were piloted throughout the majority of Ghana’s forest zones. Community Forest Committees (CFCs) should be formed, according to recommendations made by the FSD’s collaborative Resource Management Unit (CRMU). According to the guidelines, women’s participation in forest governance is essential for resolving crises due to their relationship with forest resources. Its growth and recognition are being promoted by non-governmental organizations like the Rural Development and Youth Association (RUDEYA).

1.2 Description Of The Problem

56 percent of the population of the nation resides in rural towns, according to the 2000 Population and Housing Census Report. High population expansion within forest zones leads to increased demand for forest resources and land for farming operations. The pressure on these two crucial land use systems leads to forest encroachment, which causes excessive logging of timber and non-timber forest products as well as bushfires. Ghana’s base of forest resources is disappearing at a startling rate. Nearly a third of Ghana’s forest was lost between 1955 and 1972, and since the turn of the century, deforestation has averaged 750 square kilometers each year. According to the Forest Governance living Group (2005), 70% of Ghanaians rely on forest resources for their living, and crises are difficult for the populace, who are mostly women. The people who will be impacted are rural women, who on a daily basis manage resources including water, soil, food, wood, fuel, and land.

Due to their reliance on non-timber forest products as a source of food and income from the forest, they will probably suffer a great deal.

A number of factors, including a lack of incentives for local forest resource management (by women), have contributed to the degradation of the forest. In order to improve their means of subsistence, forest-dependent rural women have been kept out of decision-making processes about access to, and benefits from, forest resources.

The 1994 Forest and Wildlife Policy places a strong emphasis on the need to “promote public awareness and involvement of rural people in forestry and wildlife conservation to maintain life-sustaining systems, preserve scenic areas, and enhance the potential for income generation opportunities,” but there is still a lack of communication and cooperation among the various forest stakeholders.

Rural women in communities near forests lack the knowledge essential to take action on the situation, their constitutional rights, and how to exercise those rights. A forest service charter, District Forest Forums (DFFs), Community Forest Committees (CFCs), and Customer Service Centers have been formed by the Forestry Commission as a result of donor pressure, claim Arthur and Brogan. On the other hand, these structures are kept in the dark regarding policy changes, the actual allocation of timber, and logging techniques, all of which are decided in the halls of power (Arthur and Brogan, 2005).

The socioeconomic development of Ghana is significantly influenced by the country’s woods. The wood industry, which dominates the forestry sector, is a sizable sector of the economy.

The main sources of income for Ghana are local and export revenues. Additionally, it is critical for stabilizing the environment. Because they serve as a haven for species, forests serve as carbon sinks, protect important watersheds, and guard against siltation and flooding. The ability of the forestry industry to contribute to the socioeconomic development of the nation and the preservation of the environment, as well as the long-term viability of timber resources and particular species, have all been threatened in recent years, with the impact on rural women being the most detrimental.

The country’s forest has decreased from 8.2 million hectares at the start of the twentieth century to 1.7 million hectares in the twenty-first, according to the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS, 2002). Continued reliance on forest resources must be based on proper management in order to achieve low volume and high value production. The Natural Resource Management Program, a comprehensive ten-year sector investment strategy, is now being carried out by the Ministry of Lands and Forestry in collaboration with the Ministries of Energy, Environment, Science and Technology, and Local Government and Rural Development. By safeguarding, restoring, and sustainably managing the national land, forest, and wildlife resources through collaborative management, this initiative seeks to boost the earnings of rural residents, and in particular, the incomes of women who own these resources. This effort employs a large number of women and other forest users in the development of tree plantations, domestication of forest livelihood opportunities, management of watersheds, and cultivation and processing of root and tuber crops, all of which are exclusively the purview of women.

In spite of all the difficulties that women and men both have encountered managing forest resources, there is mounting evidence that the degree of women’s involvement in forest administration is either unrecognized or underappreciated. It is critical to examine how much women have participated in forest management programs and how their participation has affected their way of life because the 1994 Forest and Wildlife Policy seeks to foster community participation in forest management, which includes women.

1.3 Study’s Objectives

The research’s main objective is to:

1. Identify and evaluate Community Forest Committees’ goals or justifications for including women in forest management.

2. Evaluate the impact on women CFCs’ livelihoods and their contribution to sustainable forest management.

3. Investigate the opinions of the key players regarding the effect on the livelihoods of women’s CFC engagement in the RUDEYA forest management project.

1.4 Questions For Research

The goal of the study is guided by the following research questions:

What justifies women’s CFC engagement and collaboration in forest management?

How has the involvement of women in CFCs in sustainable forest management affected their means of subsistence?

What do the main stakeholders think about how women’s CFC participation in RUDEYA’s forest management project would affect their quality of life?

1.5 RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER STUDIES

The findings will contribute to the body of knowledge on women’s roles in forest administration generally and in the Asunafo District of the Brong Ahafo region of Ghana specifically.

Additionally, the research will assist government agencies, such as the Forestry Commission, Forest Service Division, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Asunafo District Assembly, and other policymakers, in establishing priorities and developing mitigation plans for forest degradation.

The results of the study will also be used to inform stakeholders, including RUDEYA and other like-minded NGOs, about successful initiatives in the study area and enhancements to women’s livelihoods.

The study will contribute to the body of knowledge already known in this area and serve as a resource for academics, researchers, and students planning to do more study on this or a topic related to it.

1.6 The Study’s Scope

The purpose of the study was to identify and evaluate Community Forest Committees’ goals or justifications for encouraging female participation in forest management. Additionally, the study would assess how women CFCs contributed to sustainable forest management and how that affected their livelihoods. It would also look at the perspectives of the key stakeholders regarding how women CFCs’ participation in RUDEYA’s forest management project affected those stakeholders’ livelihoods. The primary district capital of Ghana’s Asunafo North District was the only area included by the study.

1.7 Study Limitation

The lack of sufficient funding prevented the researchers from interviewing all of the study area’s stakeholders, and some of the roads leading from the forest fringe communities to Asunafo North District’s main district capital were in disrepair, making access very challenging.

1.8 Term Definition

Perception is one’s own interpretation of events based on their own unique indicators and opinions. In this study, perceptions, views, and attitudes all have the same meaning.

Perceived impact: how much women CFCs or stakeholders believe that RUDEYA’s interventions have advanced or slowed any area of their standard of living.

A community-based organization developed and educated to aid in forest management is the community forest committee. The Forestry Commission came up with this idea to guarantee locals’ participation in the sustainable management of forest resources.

Non-timber forest products include snails, grasscutter, mushrooms, and other woodland creatures that farmers have attempted to domesticate for food and money.

Livelihood: The resources, pursuits, and access that determine the standard of living attained by people or households.