Abstract:
This report presents an analysis of the nature of both indigenous
and professionally sponsored community forest management systems in
two districts in Tanzania. It describes various types of internally
generated forest and tree management systems. It demonstrates that
a gap exists between indigenous and externally sponsored management
systems. In the externally sponsored projects, the concept of
participation implies that rural people should participate in
professionals' projects, rather than that professionals should
participate in the livelihood projects of rural people.
Interventions along these lines generate confrontations, as well as
degrees of collaboration and participation between local farmers
and projects. The study focusses on three key actor categories to
be considered in community forestry projects, i.e. farmers, village
extension workers and supervisors. The relations between these
actor categories constitute the "middle ground" of community
forestry development. This concept refers to the totality of social
processes and fields within which the actors attempt to establish
common ground for their negotiations over resources and development
alternatives. The study seeks to understand how strategic actions
and interactions of different actor categories shape the outcome of
community forestry projects, as well as how to bridge the gap
between internally generated activities and externally sponsored
interventions.
