Abstract
Forestry related projects fail due to the lack of participation by the community during the initiation stage. This further leads to unsustainable management of forests. This study was undertaken to examine how participatory project initiation influences sustainable forest management in Saboti forest in Trans-Nzoia County, Kenya. Participatory Development Theory guided this study. The explanatory research design was adopted. The target population was 2600 community forest association (CFA) members and 15 Kenya Forest Officers. Census sampling was used in the sampling of Kenya forest Officers and simple random sampling to select community forest management members. The sample size was 347 community forest management members and 15 Kenya forest Officers. Data were collected using questionnaires and through interview. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Presentation of findings was carried out using tables. There was a significant influence of participatory project initiation on sustainable forest management (SFM) (r = 0.700, p=0.00). This implies that an increase in participatory project initiation improved sustainable forest management in Saboti. Participatory project initiation had a significant influence on sustainable forest management. The community participation in initiation had a significant influence on sustainable forest management. There is need for forest management to involve the community members during the initiation stage of the projects in order to achieve sustainable forest management.
Highlights
Forests have a cultural, social, economic, and ecological value that play a crucial role in enhancing the quality of life and supporting natural systems in the environment. e various user groups, including herdsmen, hunters, firewood, and pole collectors, benefit from exploiting forest resources in different ecosystems [1]
A study conducted by Titus [29] on the level of community participation in the conservation of natural resource in Akampa area, Nigeria, affirms that sustainable forest management can be realized through integration of community participation in decision-making, organization, and implementation processes
On the participatory project initiation, the findings indicated that there was public participation during needs assessment and management objectives clearly described. e objectives of initiation were clearly stated basing on functions of the forests. e committee members are a representation of local diversity, and stakeholders were mutually respected. e management always recognizes the legitimate interests of stakeholders, and baseline studies are conducted with consultation during the development of Participatory Forest management Plan (PFMP)
Summary
Social, economic, and ecological value that play a crucial role in enhancing the quality of life and supporting natural systems in the environment. e various user groups, including herdsmen, hunters, firewood, and pole collectors, benefit from exploiting forest resources in different ecosystems [1]. An enabling environment for sustainability is created through community participation by allowing users to decide on the level of services to pay, to guide essential investment and management decisions, and to entrust resources in support of these choices. Empirical studies have revealed that the CFAs under the PFM approach have played an indispensable role in enhancing forestry conservation practices in various water catchment towers, including the Mau complex, Kakamega forest, and Arabuko-Sokoke. In 2009, he performed a comparative analysis study on resource conservation outcome (under the National park and Forest reserve regime) in the Mount Elgon ecosystem and established that a flexible and community-involving system is more effective than a rigid and community-excluding system in managing forest resources. No study has been conducted to examine the influence of community participation during initiation of programmes on sustainable forest management in a relatively smaller forest area such as Saboti forest [17]. ere was a need to determine how participatory project initiation influences sustainable forest management in Saboti forest in Trans-Nzoia County
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