Securing access to drylands resources for multiple users in Africa: A review of recent research

Mwangi, Esther; Dohrn, Stephan

doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2007.07.002

Cited by 37 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Studies of rangeland management systems before privatization in Africa and Mongolia (FernandezGimenez 1999, Humphrey and Sneath 1999, Fernandez-Gimenez 2002, Behnke 2008, Mwangi and Dohrn 2008 have found that traditional pastoralists practice flexible management by maintaining flexible physical boundaries for grassland use as well as flexibility in the http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol16/iss2/art1/ membership of the groups using the rangeland. In contrast to a well-defined, map-hardened boundary, herder traditional boundaries are "fuzzy" (Behnke 1994, Verdery 1999, Mwangi and Dohrn 2008.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast to a well-defined, map-hardened boundary, herder traditional boundaries are "fuzzy" (Behnke 1994, Verdery 1999, Mwangi and Dohrn 2008. When adverse climate events happen, pastoralists adjust the boundaries of pastures as well as the size of the user group to allow access to alternative resources when needed.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Before grasslands were contracted to individual households, herders in Gacha B shared a larger area of rangeland at the hot level, and connections among the cadres facilitated sharing even larger areas outside the gacha when needed. As Mwangi and Dohrn (2008) noticed, the fuzzy characteristics of herder pasture boundaries are not ambiguous but flexible, i.e., users know clearly who has the right to what, when, and on what terms. Although property is about the boundaries between self and nonself, self is not necessarily individual but can also be collective.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

China's Grassland Contract Policy and its Impacts on Herder Ability to Benefit in Inner Mongolia: Tragic Feedbacks

Li¹,

Huntsinger²

2011

E&S

173

140

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

China's Grassland Contract Policy and its Impacts on Herder Ability to Benefit in Inner Mongolia: Tragic Feedbacks

Li¹,

Huntsinger²

2011

E&S

173

140

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“…In addition, most West African people rely on forest resources for their primary energy sources and livelihoods, which add to the pressure on the forests (Lykke 2000;Raebild et al 2007). Participatory approaches have been introduced as strategies to promote sustainable forest management in recent decades, but the true extent of incorporation of local communities' priorities remains questionable (Hermosilla 2000;Ribot 2001;Mwangi and Dohrn 2008). Furthermore, local perceptions differ from those of the planners and managers in several respects, such as species extinction, management integration, and the benefits gained from protecting forests (Kristensen and Balslev 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consumptive values and local perception of dry forest decline in Burkina Faso, West Africa

Paré

Savadogo

Tigabu

et al. 2009

Environ Dev Sustain

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Traditional ecological knowledge and local experience of resource management and the usefulness of plant species can make important contributions to attempts to understand forest ecosystems and to develop effective sustainable management strategies for them. Therefore, the utilization of tree species by local people, their perceptions of changes in the surrounding forests, and suggested solutions for associated problems, were studied in the Sissili province of southern Burkina Faso. Information was collected through a combination of participatory rural appraisals, household interviews, and observational methods. Principal component analysis was used to analyze the consumptive values of woody species and their respective parts. A total of 82 species were identified, 90% of them were used for medicinal purposes, 78% for fodder, 73% for food, 67% for house construction, and 58% for wood carving. This suggests that forests play a key role in sustaining the rural livelihood and contributing to poverty reduction. The various stakeholders perceived that vegetation clearing for cultivation of cash crops (agribusiness) was Readers should send their comments on this paper to BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue. the main driver of the change in forest cover. Species reported to be declining in the area included Parkia biglobosa, Pterocarpus erinaceus, Afzelia africana, Bombax costatum, Tamarindus indica, and Diospyros mespiliformis. Thus, a concerted effort should be made to manage the remaining natural forests in the country. Appropriate management strategies should be developed jointly by the local communities and external support groups to integrate the valuable local knowledge about forest species with the stakeholders' suggestions in order to promote sustainable management of the region's forest ecosystems.

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“…Expansion of competing land-uses, land tenure transformation, individualisation and enclosures have reduced the net availability of rangeland resources, often with significant consequences for pastoral livelihood and the environment. For example, in Kenya, the group ranch concept is said to be in its fourth decade, but there is general consensus among scholars and researchers, including policymakers, that the policy has failed to meet its objective (of commercializing production, improving pastoral wellbeing, improving environmental management) and has also jeopardised the socio-economic welfare of the Massai community [23,39,40]. The group ranch concept, a world bank-sponsored Kenya livestock development project, allowed for the setting aside of certain areas of land to be collectively owned by a group of people legally registered as members of a particular ranch for collective management [40].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Pastoralism and Land Tenure Transformation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Conflicting Policies and Priorities in Ngamiland, Botswana

Basupi¹,

Quinn²,

Dougill³

2017

Land

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Abstract:In dryland Africa, access to land and water resources are central to pastoral livelihood activities. Policy intervention in these regions represents the outcome of concerted post-independence processes in which countries have committed to land tenure transformation as a policy objective. This was meant to create private, liberal property rights to replace communal customary tenure systems which were considered to be a constraint to development. Despite these efforts, decades of scientific research indicate that countries are still struggling to meet environmental sustainability objectives. Land degradation where it existed has not been halted and traditional pastoral livelihoods have been disrupted. The overall evidence base for policymaking remains weak as deficiencies in data or information on which management decisions were based led to poor policy performance. In a bid to strengthen understanding in this area, this study has a dual aim: 1. Using a systematic review of the literature, we examine the impact of land tenure transformation in pastoral areas in sub-Saharan Africa; 2. We analyse user-perspectives on land tenure transformation and pastoralists' rights in Ngamiland, Botswana, so as to draw out the salient issues that must be addressed in order to reconcile pastoral tenure conflicts and land management in sub-Saharan Africa.Results from meta-analysis and case study show that land tenure transformation policies across pastoral areas are subject to similar challenges and consequences. Protecting pastoral land rights requires deliberate policy interventions that recognise pastoralism as a productive and efficient use of resources. Policymakers need to overcome anti-pastoral prejudice and focus on Sustainable Land Management goals. This entails establishing negotiated and flexible tenure frameworks that strengthen pastoralists' participation in decision-making arenas by working with pastoral communities on the basis of understanding their livelihood system.

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Securing access to drylands resources for multiple users in Africa: A review of recent research

Cited by 37 publications

References 20 publications

China's Grassland Contract Policy and its Impacts on Herder Ability to Benefit in Inner Mongolia: Tragic Feedbacks

China's Grassland Contract Policy and its Impacts on Herder Ability to Benefit in Inner Mongolia: Tragic Feedbacks

Consumptive values and local perception of dry forest decline in Burkina Faso, West Africa

Pastoralism and Land Tenure Transformation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Conflicting Policies and Priorities in Ngamiland, Botswana

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