Natural Resources Management in West Africa : Taking Stock

1
Natural Resources Management in West Africa
Taking Stock

• Debriefing on the Results of the NRM Stock-taking
  Workshop, Koudougou, Dec 6-10,1999

2
Value Added of Koudougou

• NRM success is achievable and is being achieved
• 10 years after Segou, movement from promising
  approaches to proven results
• environmental rhetoric overtaken by economic
  realities

3
Context for Stock-taking

• Tens of millions of dollars invested in NRM
  programs across Africa
• Results of investments poorly documented and
  little capitalized
• Investments in capitalizing experiments have
  produced results (e.g. PADLOS, ASDGII, CBNRM
  programs)

4
Segou Action Agenda - 1989

• ecological restoration
• share responsibility with local communities
• decentralization
• land tenure reform
• increase local investment
• womens participation
• information and training
• population policies

5
Koudougou NRM Workshop

• Take stock of progress in addressing Segou agenda
  and in implementing action plan
• Provide senior West African specialists with
  opportunity to take stock of NRM in the subregion
  over a thirty-year period
• Identify approaches and tools to accelerate
  progress in NRM
• Strengthen recognition of NRM contributions to
  economic development

6
Workshop Overview

• Representatives from 5 countries and five NRM
  sub-sectors
• 25 papers presented by senior West African
  specialists
• Identified changes, impacts, contributing
  factors, and perspectives (synthesis forthcoming)
• Assessed tools to capture, monitor and capitalize
  on results

7
Observed Changes

• Role of the State (from policeman to partner)
• Legislative reforms (NRM led decentralization and
  devolution of authority to CBOs)
• Models tested and proven (NFM, CES/DRS, CBNRM)
• Recognition of NRM linkages to livelihood and
  income generation (NRM based enterprises)
• Demonstrated effectiveness in managing conflicts
  (Twi kilibo)

8
Observed changes (continued)

• NRM is increasingly integrated into agricultural
  intensification (OHV, PSN/FIDA)
• Shift from technocratic, top-down to
  participatory approach (GTV)
• Willingness and capacity of local groups to
  invest in NRM (Goure, KAED, OHV)
• Localized reduction of degradation and
  restoration of NR productivity

9
Forest Management

• Succession of projects triggered by
  deforestation, fuelwood shortages, etc.
• shift from plantations to woodlots to managed
  natural forests (now 394,000 ha.)
• forestry codes reformed in most countries
• 235 groupement de gestion forestiere in BF
• billions CFA in income for woodcutters

10
Range Management

• State and projects had undermined local control
  and failed to slow range degradation
• Promising breakthrough in rehabilitation and
  management of pastures in Niger, Chad (gestion
  holistique - PPP)
• on 13,000 ha near Abalak, Niger 1997-99
• - 43 increase in vegetation cover
• - area of bare soil reduced from 68 to 35
• - tripled biomass production from 667 to 1683
  kg/ha
• - milk production increased from 1.5 to 4
  liters/day

11
Wildlife Management

• Initial pilot activity - Nazinga game ranch
• Large ungulates in Nazinga increased from 1,000
  to 20,000 1979-1991
• Growth in local fisheries, gamemeat production,
  tourism revenues, employment
• Multiple new initiatives regionally, nationally,
  locally in Burkina, associated with GEF, GTV,
  ADEFA

12
Historical Perspective

• Common Elements From the 25 Workshop Technical
  Papers

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Constraints and Shortcomings

• Implementation of policy reforms hampered by
  institutional inertia
• Limited application of some promising NRM models
• Lack of resources to track and evaluate impacts
• Continued dependence on external aid (trop grand
  attentisme)

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Whats New?

• From experimentation to adoption
• Not yet enough to offset larger degradation
• Zones where degradation perceptibly altered
• Striking consensus on impact of economic
  incentives and economic drivers
• We know enough to spread results

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Whats New? (continued)

• Importance of local advocacy and local
  facilitators
• Impact being achieved via new project /
  facilitation and assistance approaches
• Not just more money, but more effective use of
  resources
• Replication depends on policy and governance
  framework

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Findings

• Results achieved in 90s are rooted in the
  experiments of the 70s and 80s, and bore fruit
  through persistence
• Shift in focus from sensitizing farmers about
  the need for NRM to sensitizing decision-makers
  about the incentives farmers need to invest in
  NRM

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Findings (continued)

• Effective advocacy comes from within and requires
  persistent and coordinated efforts
• Reformers are more effective as a group working
  together vs as individuals working separately
• There is value added in working across countries
  and across sectors

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Next Steps

• Papers synthesized by WA-based specialists
• Proceedings, syntheses and technical papers to be
  finalized and disseminated to decision makers and
  posted on the web
• Systems for information exchange established in
  the subregion

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Next Steps (continued)

• Participants networked and actively contributing
  all relevant fora
• Presentation to FRAME Contact Group (Dakar, May
  2000)
• IUCN Workshop
• Bobo Meetings
• Possible Segou II?

25
Implications for USAID

• Tension between role of problem solver vs.
  facilitator (Reporting challenges)
• Tension between scaling up rapidly using
  prescriptive approaches vs. progressively
  establishing enabling environment, building
  capacity, facilitation of stakeholders, etc.

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Implications for USAID (cont)

• Tension between tracking trends (as proof of
  concept) vs tracking absolute changes