Forest Resource Management and Utilisation through a Gendered Lens in Namibia

Abstract

The shift in forestry policy towards resource management and access rights from state control to local community control has been a welcome step towards sustainable forest management in Namibia. The policy acknowledges the direct dependence on natural environmental resources by the proportional majority of the population that live in the rural areas of Namibia. This study was aimed at performing gender analysis by identifying relationships of various groups to natural resources. The study further assessed the influence these relationships have on control, access and use of forest resources, as well as on natural resource management and the implications thereof on various forest management efforts in the country. Data were collected from seven community forest institutions in Namibia and analysed using the Harvard Gender Analytical Framework. The findings show a gendered differentiated knowledge, control and access to forest resources and unequal participation in leadership and governance. Furthermore, the results suggest that unequal power relations among minority and vulnerable groups affect access to and control of forest resources. This study proposes participation of both men and women in the management, protection, access and utilisation of forest resources, as this will contribute to sustainable forest management and economic development of all members of society.