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Community Dependency and Conservation Practices in Khagrachari, Bangladesh: a Study on Management of Village Common Forests (vcfs)

Masum Alam
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh.

Md. Rayhanur Rahman
Faculty of Science and Forestry, University of Eastern Finland, 80101 Joensuu, Finland

Md. Arif Chowdhury*
Institute of Water and Flood Management, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Mohammed Shafiul Alam
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh.

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Forest is one of the main sources of different resources where indigenous communities are mostly dependent on the forest for their sustainable management of life. Following the dependency of indigenous communities on natural resources and their conservation practices and development of Village Common Forest (VCF) in Chittagong hill tracts. Present study was conducted at Haduk Para and Hridoy Member Para VCF’s in Khagrachari, Bangladesh to understand the dependency and practices of villagers on the VCF for their livelihood and other resources. Among different types of products extracted from Haduk Para and Hridoy Member Para, the monetary value was highest (14700 BDT and 22400 BDT, respectively) for timber but fuelwood is the most extracted product (1930 Kg HH-1 Yr-1 and 2470 Kg HH-1 Yr-1 , respectively) they have collected from VCF. Besides, to fulfill daily personal needs different plant edible products, fauna, and medicinal plants have been collected by the community people from both VCFs. In case of conservation purpose, Hridoy Member Para giving more priority for protecting the source of water resources where the majority from Haduk Para community replied that their priority was to avert natural calamities. However, both the VCFs community have taken some initiatives to reduce the pressure from the forest floor like enrichment planting, non-wood forest products cultivation, regional training for handicraft manufacturing and alternative income generation activities for the villagers. Therefore, safeguarding forest and biodiversity resources and at the same time improving the livelihood security for the indigenous communities, nowadays is mandatory to protect and manage these VCFs from being degraded.

Keywords: Community people; Income generation; Ethnomedicinal practices; Extraction value; Khagrachari.

Location: Haduk Para from Khagrachari Sadar Upazila and Hridoy Member Para from Matiranga Upazila

Start Date: 00-12-2017

End Date: 00-05-2018

Program Area: Knowledge Management

Commodity: Forest

Objectives:

Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the dependency of the community and participation in and attitudes about conservation practices of Haduk Para and Hridoy Member Para VCF of Khagrachari.

Methodology:

2.1 Study Area Two VCFs known as Haduk Para from Khagrachari Sadar Upazila and Hridoy Member Para from Matiranga Upazila were selected purposively to conduct this research (Fig There are 130 and 105 households in Haduk Para and Hridoy Member Para, respectively. In addition, the total area of Haduk Para and Hridoy Member Para is 110 and 45 acres, respectively. In this research, household survey and forest survey were conducted from December 2017 to May 2018.

2.2 Household Data Collection Among the entire number of households, individual household surveys were conducted by random sampling method with 35 (27% sampling intensity) households from Haduk Para and 35 households (33% sampling intensity) from the Hridoy Member Para using a present questionnaire. In addition, three focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted to understand current threats, availability of forest resources and rules and regulations of institutional arrangement for further VCF management. Moreover, five Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) were done shopkeepers, farmers and headman, personnel from local Non-Government Organization and Government organization and local people purposively considering the fact that they were engaged with VCF management activities.

2.3 Forest Data Collection and Specimen Identification Forest data were collected by transect survey method following the method described by Hossain et al. [28] where the common species (flora and fauna) collected by community peop were identified directly in the field, while the fresh samples of the unknown tree species were collected for the preparation of herbarium specimens. Further identification was done with help of taxonomist from the Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong (IFESCU).

2.4 Data Analysis Collected data were sorted carefully, analyzed by excel, and present scientifically where the value of extracted materials is calculated by the following formula: Value of extraction (E_x) = A_e × P_c

E_x = Value of extraction (Tk), A_e= Amount of extracted materials (Kg HH-1 Yr-1 ), P_c = Price per unit of product (Tk).

Source of Information: Asian Journal of Research in Agriculture and Forestry 4(2): 1-13, 2019; Article no.AJRAF.51421 ISSN: 2581-7418

Article Link (Online Journal): DOI: 10.9734/AJRAF/2019/v4i230060

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The VCF’s are managed, protected and utilized by indigenous village communities with their traditional knowledge, innovations, and practices which set a model for the conservation of biodiversity in Khagrachari. Formation of a local VCF committee and setting of forest management practices by local NGO’s restrict users from over-exploitation of forest resources. Both communities consider the conservation of water sources, protection from natural calamities, food, and medicinal safety to be of critical importance. The executive committee took several initiatives to improve forest resource sustainability and reduce dependence on the forest. These include enrichment planting to fill areas with gaps in the native flora of VCFs, providing training for more income-generating activities, making laws to protect the forest and backing these up with safety /security patrols and resettlements for added surveillance. Further modification of VCF’s rules and regulations is required to protect and manage these VCFs from being degraded for the sake of indigenous people and the ecosystem as a whole.

Knowledge Management: Journal