Decentralisation and community based natural resource management in Tanzania : the case of local governance and community based conservation in districts around Selous Game Reserve.
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Date
2001
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Abstract
The dissertation presents the results of a study of the role of decentralisation and
community participation in natural resource management in Tanzania. It analyses
whether the shift of central government power to decentralised government units and
the participation of local communities at village level result in more effective and
more sustainable management of natural resources, wildlife in particular. The study
uses Songea District and the Selous Conservation Programme south of Tanzania as
a case study.
As the examination of the origins and meaning of community-based natural resource
management and decentralisation and the analysis of international experiences
show, both approaches have been adapted in a number of countries in sub-Saharan
Africa. The government of Tanzania, with the support of a wide range of donors, is
implementing an ambitious Local Government Reform Programme. The Selous
Conservation Programme, jointly administered by the Tanzania Wildlife Division and
GTZ, is promoting community-based conservation in villages bordering the Selous
Game Reserve. The new Wildlife Policy, 1998, aims at the country-wide
implementation of community-based conservation.
Linkages between local government reform and improved environmental
management are weak from insitutional, legal and technical points of view. On the
other hand, the country has a policy environment that is highly supportive to
decentralised environmental management and there is potential for improvement at
both local and national levels.
Songea District Council has defined the sustainable management of natural
resources and the environment as one of its development priorities. Concerning the
implementation of the Local Government Reform Programme, the district faces some
problems and difficulties. Lack of human capacity and insufficient financial resources
constrain the decentralisation process.
Until now, up to about 50 villages bordering the game reserve have established their
Wildlife Management Areas utilising their hunting quota. Due to insufficient and
overdue legislation, the communities cannot fully make use and benefit from their
wildlife resource. If remained uncorrected in the near future, the sustainability of
community-based conservation programmes is threatened.
Description
Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-Univeristy of Natal, Durban, 2001.
Keywords
Natural resources--Tanzania--Management., Natural areas--Tanzania--Management--Citizen participation., Selous game reserve region (Tanzania), Selous conservation programme., Theses--Development studies.