FACTORS AFFECTING PARTICIPATORY SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF COMMUNAL FORESTS: THE CASE OF JARDEGA JARTE WOREDA, WESTERN ETHIOPIA.

Abstract

Participatory Sustainable management of communal forest is the key to manage forests for the long terms and to certify that all uses derived from the forest meet present day need without affecting the ability of future generations to satisfy their own requirements. However, the communal forests are degraded due to human interferences, and the management practices were not attaining the goal anticipated. In this study, the constraints to the sustainable management of communal forest were assessed. Purposive sampling techniques were employed to reach at the final unit of sample size. Similarly sample kebeles were selected by employing purposive and proportional quota. The required data for this study were obtained from both primary and secondary data sources. The finding indicated that the current condition of communal forest is heavily disturbed and increased; causes for the removal of communal forest were identified as agriculture, fuel wood, sustainable management of communal forest, decision making power on the issue of illegal users of communal forests, and respondents’ benefits from communal forest in the study area. The research result showed that the relationship between the respondents age group, gender, educational status, respondents’ distance from market and forest were significant with participatory sustainable management of communal forest. In general from this study, the illegal act in using the communal forests led to the communal forest degradation increased in the study area.