Farmers' Perception of Village and Farm Forestry Program Towards Sustainable Forestry Development

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to determine farmers' perception of Village and Farm Forestry Program (VFFP) towards sustainable forestry development. Data were collected from VFFP members of three selected sub-districts of the Dinajpur district in Bangladesh. In general, most of the respondents did not face major problems in establishing their own forestry. The majority of the farmers (96%) perceived that their forestry management activities had moderately to highly positive effects of VFFP towards sustainable forestry development. Farmers' education, organizational participation, training, communication exposure, innovativeness, farming experience, and knowledge of farm-forestry had significant positive relationships with their perception of VFFP towards sustainable forestry development. This study concludes that VFFP, along with other support service providers, may assist so that the technical and socio-organizational capacities of the beneficiaries, especially of the small and marginal farmers, are built up through a process that promotes self confidence and leadership for their empowerment.