Development pathways for co-management in the Sundarban mangrove forest: A multiple stakeholder perspective

Abstract

The emergence of co-management, where various government and non-government actors work together, is one of the most important governance mechanisms for natural resource management. However, local stakeholders' understanding of forest co-management has thus far been poorly appreciated. This study examined stakeholders' views on the forest co-management system of the Sundarban mangrove forest in Bangladesh. Four villages in the Chandpai range of the Sundarban mangrove forest were selected for the study. Primary data were collected through key informant interviews with multiple stakeholder levels, and focus group discussions with men and women either involved in forest co-management or not. Thematic coding and content analysis of the qualitative data was used to analyse stakeholders' views on key forest co-management activities and practices: forest protection, monitoring, meeting role, training and organisational support. These co-management activities are largely implemented through local stakeholders who are members of a number of institutions: the Village Conservation Forum (VCF), the People's Forum (PF) and the Community Patrol Group (CPG) at the local level, and the Co-management Committee (CMC) at the higher level, in which local, district and national stakeholders are involved. Stakeholders reported both positive and negative views on these co-management activities. While the positive views were mostly related to the benefits obtained from forest co-management practices (e.g., increased knowledge, awareness and ability to obtain entry permits), the negative views were related to the obstacles frequently faced by the local stakeholders, such as limited harvesting opportunities, poor meeting support and strict rules on eligibility for VCF/PF membership. The findings indicated that while stakeholders' views of forest co-management activities were mixed, it did identify the types of existing co-management benefits, problems and challenges of the local people and showed where they differed. Furthermore, this study identified particular ways to strengthen the co-management activities from the local people's perspective, which would enable their participation in the co-management system of the Sundarban mangrove forest.