Steps for community forestry working process and practices

Persons responsible for CF activities planning and implementation in the field can adopt following CF planning and implementation cycle:

Investigation stage:

The extension staffs during this stage establish rapport with villagers, and gather social and technical information about CF possibilities, and identify users (households) of the community. During this phase, he/she will carry out following works:

• Discuss about CF policy and practices with the local villagers.
• Identify and verify the households to be involved in forest user group. There are two types of user groups that are primary users (those households who depend on the forest for subsistence and have principal responsibility for forest protection and management), and secondary users (those users who need limited products and have limited rights).
• Identify community forest areas (ha) through forest survey, and prepare map of the forest.
• Identify existing forest management systems.
• Identify interest group’s need and concerns.
• Carry out forest inventory to assess forest species, crown cover and density, regeneration, and annual increment etc.
• Identify special needs of women, poor (identify poor through well-being ranking) and disadvantage households for the adoption of CF practices or land use management practices.
• Estimate demand and supply of forest products.
• Prepare social and resource maps of the community and CF.
• Organize meeting of all households who want to involve in Community Forest User Groups.

Negotiation stage:

The extension staff during this phase assists villagers for Community Forest User Group formation and discussion, and also helps to write constitution and community Forest operational plans for handing over of allocated forest to the concerned user groups with simple livelihood improvement plans, and land use development and management plans. During this phase, he/she will carry out following works:

• Form a forest user group and its executive committee
• Identify solutions to user’s needs and problems.
• Prepare constitution, and operation plan with simple livelihood improvement plans of CFUG members, and these plans and constitution discussed in forest user group general assembly.
• Registered the group in DFO office.
• Facilitate handing over of forests to the user groups: During this process, the District Forest Officer (DFO) and CFUG chairperson signed on operational plan and constitution, and then hand over the community forest management responsibility to user group.

Implementation stage:

During this stage, farmers carry out activities written in constitution and operational plans with the advice and assistance of the Range Post staff (DFO staff). The DFO staff and user group members needs to ensure regular monitoring and evaluation of field activities. During this phase, he/she will carry out following works:

• Facilitate for implementation of constitution and forest operational plans in coordination with concerned line agencies.
• Monitor forest operational plans and constitution implementation process and practices.
• Strengthen the capacity of CFUG members with technical and social advice for implementation of forest operational plans and other livelihood improvement plans.

Review and revision stage:

Range post staff during this stage assists CFUG with appraisal, and review and revision of constitution and forest operational plans based on information received from the monitoring and evaluation of field activities and on the expiry of operational plans. Sometimes, activities are reviewed and revised based on user’s needs and interests.

Range post staff should always remembered that record keeping and monitoring using gender and social equity indicators are necessary at all stages of community forestry activities planning and implementation.