Policy & Legal Framework Reports |
IFMSLP Reports & Strategies |
Participatory Forest Management Manuals
Policy and Legal Framework Reports
The Government
of Malawi recognises the importance of forests and other natural resources as highlighted in the
Constitution. It has formulated several national instruments, including the
1996 National Forest Policy
and the Forestry
Act of 1997, which focus on the importance of people as well as the welfare contribution of forests in Malawi. These instruments direct a change from the
'command' style of forestry towards an approach that encourages community involvement and recognises other actors, including civil society and the private sector. The
2001 National
Forestry Programme is intended to guide the implementation of the Policy,
'to translate good intentions into real results'. It features 12 strategies, each with a set of prioritised actions, with the overall goal of
"sustainable management of forest goods and services for improved and equitable livelihoods"
Natural resources, and forests in particular, are a key element in the Government strategy for poverty reduction as highlighted in the Malawi Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (MPRSP) 2002.
"In natural resources, community-based management will be promoted in order to ensure conservation and sustainable utilisation of natural resources as an additional off-farm source of income."
Malawi Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper 2002
After beginning to implement the National Forest Policy by involving communities and other stakeholders in the management of forest resources, a number of gaps were identified. A supplement to the National Forest Policy, entitled
'Community Based
Forest Management', was therefore produced.
"The policy goal for community-based forest management is to empower rural communities to conserve and develop Malawi’s forest resources for the economic and environmental benefit of the present and future generations."
CBFM Supplement to National Forest Policy, July 2003 A number of documents and guides have been developed to support the implementation of the
Forestry
Act and National Forest Policy. Many of these are available here for download – alternatively,
contact us for hard copies.
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Programme Reports and Strategies
IFMSLP produces systematic reports of its results, achievements, and lessons against a clear indicator framework. This is done quarterly and annually. The Programme has also helped the Department of Forestry to generate specific strategic documents to improve service delivery to the sector. Technical Assistance (both long- and short-term) provided by international consultants is also documented, so that the inputs and advice (based on specific need or request) are recorded for future
reference:
Participatory Forest Management Process Development Manuals
The Department of Forestry and IFMSLP aim to support and promote Participatory Forest Management
(PFM). A consistent approach is vital, and this is increasingly important now that forest extension responsibilities are being devolved to District Assemblies, and at a time when more and more non-governmental organisations and development programmes are involving themselves in forestry activities.
As PFM in Malawi is evolving under different conditions throughout the country, an
adaptive learning approach among practitioners is important. IFMSLP is playing a central role in generating and documenting lessons from field-level learning in PFM in a range of land tenure situations.
Adaptive learning is about systematically documenting the process that your team has gone through and the results you have achieved. This calls for all involved to act as learning agents responding to changes, both internal and external by detecting and correcting problems and embedding the results in subsequent activities.
To this end, IFMSLP and its partners have developed several documents through field development and testing – and these are being continually refined and adapted. The processes documented range from community livelihood analysis and planning activities to forest resource assessment and co-management.
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IFMSLP Reports & Strategies |
Participatory Forest Management Manuals
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