Abstract
The exploitation of common property resources has often witnessed rapid degradation due to indiscriminate exploitation for selfish reasons. The Oku Community Forest is a replica of this type of forest that has been under human influence since time immemorial. Taking into consideration the fact that institutions have failed to meet up with sustainable management strategies, the management of these forest resources depends unavoidably on the holistic approach which requires local communities and institutions to make use of indigenous technology in resource management. This study focuses on the indigenous strategies in communal resource management in the Oku Community Forest. Data for the study were collected using both primary and secondary sources with much emphasis on the administration of questionnaires. The data were analysed in both qualitative and quantitative terms. The relationship between population increase, communal resource exploitation and the impact on the environment was correlated through the use of the chi square. From field evidence, there is a relationship between population increase, the over exploitation of communal resources and communal resource degradation. The study therefore recommends the community based resource management as a panacea for sustainable community forest resources in the Oku Community Forest. This will help to limit over exploitation and thus could enhance a sustainable management of the communal forest resources.
Highlights
Forests cover almost one third of the world land area and most are inhabited by indigenous and rural communities who have customary rights to their forests and have developed ways of life and traditional knowledge that are attuned to their natural environment [1]
These groups of respondents provided data on some of the indigenous strategies put in place by the local population towards the management of the resources. 100 questionnaires were administered in six villages selected from each of the six compartments that make up the Oku Community Forest
This is the major reason for the indigenous management systems to ensure the sustainability of the communal resources in the Oku Community Forest
Summary
Forests cover almost one third of the world land area and most are inhabited by indigenous and rural communities who have customary rights to their forests and have developed ways of life and traditional knowledge that are attuned to their natural environment [1]. The funds provided by the local community for various activities like the payment of patrol teams in the forest are insufficient and the little available is sometimes being embezzled These problems have created a tough time in implementing the various indigenous strategies for the management Oku community forest resources. Interviews with forest users, personnel of the Forest Management Institutions and the Association of Oku Forest Management Institutions (ASSOFOMI) and the traditional authorities like the Kwifon within the forest provided data on the methods of exploitation, activities of the forest management institutions and the indigenous strategies implemented to enhance the sustainable management of communal resources and the challenges faced in carrying out these activities respectively. The data were analysed in both qualitative and quantitative terms through the use of inferential and non-inferential statistics
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