A Brief Overview on SocialForestry Issues of Myanmar

The Sixth Conference of the ASEAN Social Forestry Network

Introduction The estimated forest cover of Myanmar is 52 million ha 32 million ha is covered with closed and degraded

forests About 2 million families earn their living by shifting

cultivation affecting 20 million ha (FD, 2014) These lands are vulnerable and in the absence of

rehabilitation Myanmar acknowledge interdependency of forest and

people and planning to implement social forestryprograms to substitute shifting cultivation

The question is whether the imposition is appropriateand acceptable to forest dwellers

Poverty rate of Myanmar must be reduced to 16% 76% of Myanmar’s total population lived in the rural

area and are mostly poor Food insecurity exists in socio-economically least

developing areas of the country Most of them depend on forest for their livelihood Thus, social forestry becomes a very promising

strategy in rural areas The framework needs to ensure sustainable

livelihood of forest dwellers and environmentalprotection

Problem Statement

Purpose• To provide a framework for discussion and further

research for the promotion and development ofsocial forestry on a large scale

• To inform managers and policymakers in theirdealings with various stakeholders

The existence of shifting cultivation in Myanmar is acompound effect of the following causes: Ethnic groups and local people have traditionally rely

on shifting cultivation as subsistence agriculturalpractice

Topographic condition does not allow enough landresource to develop permanent cultivation

Little or no alternative opportunity to substituteshifting cultivation with more promising land usesystem

Due to population growth and poverty, there is nooption expect shifting cultivation which needs verylittle investment

Shifting Cultivation: Causes

FD is implementing integrated land use practices as adevelopment solution to eradicate shifting cultivation: Initiating agroforestry by growing long term crops

together at the cultivation phase Developing CF practices Facilitating development of contour bund plantations Encouraging to participate in establishing forest

plantations Mix-planting of trees and long term agricultural crops Measures to develop possible income generation

opportunities Encouraging to manufacture and utilize green manure Extension about the adverse impacts of shifting

cultivation

Shifting Cultivation: Alternatives

No simple solution to the problem because there is noclearly defined National Land Use Policy

Different Ministries enact different policies and laws withlittle or no collaboration

Up to the 2012, the MOECAF did not formally recognizesettlements and all kinds of cultivation inside the RFs

Ministry of Home Affairs might formally recognize someand informally recognize others

Ministry of Agriculture may formally recognize thecultivation areas inside the RFs

Thus, allocation of access to land and land relatedopportunities are very diverse and complicated

Land Tenure

Government of the Union of Myanmar is developing DraftNational Land Use Policy to deliver sensible landmanagement and good governance

It includes commitment to formal reorganization of localcustomary law and legitimate customary land use

It is part of strategy to promote poverty eradication, socialjustice and equity, aiming at sustainable development

Thus tries to address land use rights, tenure governanceand security, gender issues, land conflict resolution,environmental protection and conservation, lawharmonization, etc.

Changes in Land Use Policy

In 2013, FD made an inventory regarding forest dwellers From that data, it categorized two different groups Total villages with more than 50 households is 1604 which

occupies land use of 330,984 ha 5,141 villages with less than 50 households occupies

407,152 ha Systematic relocation of less than 50 villages with buffer

zones FD will totally abrogate the areas of village area, religious

and communal area and paddy fields Permit long term land leases for horticultural and long

term agricultural crop lands Concerning to farm lands, FD will follow CFIs and establish

agroforestry based community forests

Changes in Land Use Practices

Livelihood of forest dwellers will be more secured Land resources will also be best managed and protected The decentralization of land use and land tenure will

become significant key to achieving the general aim ofsustainable development

Official recognition of long term land lease consolidatescattered and resource depleting form of land use

Equitable policies of land reform will be a promisingstrategy to reduce poverty

Participation of women will be improved Networks between community forestry user groups are

planning to establish up to national level

Management Opportunities

Development intervention is too fast giving little time forthe forest dwellers to understand and accept the reasonsbehind changes

Imposing development solutions on forest dwellers hasthe danger of resulting in inappropriate or unacceptableto the community

It is a big challenge to train all forest dwellers Unintentionally encourage more encroachments inside RF Unequal relationship always exists between the oppressed

and the oppressor groups FD might face constraints in getting concrete data

representing the contribution and linkages of integratedland use changes with sustainable development and goodgovernance

Possible Management Constraints

Governance of Community Forests• World Bank argues that poverty reduction depends on

improvements in institutions and policies• Good governance contributes achieving the goal of

poverty eradication and dominates today’s developmentagenda

• A research is made to explore relationship between threepillars of good governance (PROFOR) and success of CF

• 11 relevant components from three pillars whichrepresent fundamentals of forest governance were usedas key variables

• Model Summary of components e

a. Predictors: (Constant), Component 3.2b. Predictors: (Constant), Component 3.2, Component 3.1c. Predictors: (Constant), Component 3.2, Component 3.1, Component 3.3d. Predictors: (Constant), Component 3.2, Component 3.1, Component 3.3,

Component 1.4e. Dependent variable: Success of CF

Model R R Square Adjusted RSquare

Std. Error ofthe Estimate

1 .501a .251 .245 .4352 .615b .378 .368 .3983 .670 c .449 .436 .3764 .722d .521 .506 .352

Findings

Up-scaling Community Forestry• Myanmar Forest Policy 1995 acknowledge interdependency of

forest and people• It has been 20 years since Myanmar practice CF• The aim was to fulfill local communities’ subsistence needs,

and unsurprisingly leads to the lack of incentives• To provide economic development and forest protection

impacts in rural areas, a change is urgently needed• World Bank (2013) reveals a shift in forest sector by putting

poverty alleviation and sustainable economic development onequal footing with conservation

• Commercialization may lead to successful integration of foresttrees and agricultural crops to meet multiple demands ofmost disadvantaged groups

Conceptual Framework

Communicate and Share knowledge

FairInvestment

CapacityDevelopment

Enterprise-oriented

CommercializationLocallyControlledForestry

NetworkMarket Opportunities/

ConstraintsEnabling

Conditions

PolicyRecommendation

SuccessfulCommercialization

GovernmentPrivateSectorCSO

SecureCommercialForestRight

CFUGs

Basic Needs

Surplus

Preliminary Findings• It did not show obvious contribution of CF to community

livelihoods• Inequitable opportunity for different CFUGs (Accessibility,

knowing how to explain, etc. are main criteria)• Location-specific commercial opportunities have been found

in communal forests• Potential for Bamboo in Southern Shan State and Magwe

Division, Thanakha (Hesperethusa crenulata) and Zi (Ziziphusjujuba) in Magwe Division

• Growing demand for semi-finished and finished products ofthese species provide new opportunities

• Wa-u and Gyin are the most economically feasible crops in theface of climate change

Conclusion• Review strategy options for future CF initiatives to be

developed and improved, and CFUGs become viable• To ensure development over the long term, initiatives

should ensure equal participation and mutualunderstanding

• Forest policy regarding CF should concordance withbroader development policies

• FD has to facilitate local institutional building• Forest dwellers should be supported to share

experiences and learn by themselves• This will increase the capacity of the people and leads to

perceptional changes