Influence of community participation in forest protection, Gathiuru forest, Nyeri county

Abstract

Many countries in the world are endowed with rich natural resource base which supports livelihoods of local communities as well as business. However, these natural resources are increasingly threatened by unsustainable exploitation and inadequate benefits and incentives for their protection. The purpose of this research study was to investigate the influence of community participation in forest protection, Gathiuru forest, Nyeri County. The objectives of this study were; To assess how community silvicultural practices influence protection of Gathiuru forest in Nyeri County; To examine how community user groups activity influence protection of Gathiuru forest in Nyeri County and; To establish how community patrols influence protection of Gathiuru forest in Nyeri County. This study was pursued in the context of community and government perceptions to allow forest adjacent communities participate in forest protection as opposed to command and control approach that has been inexistence based on theory of Planned Behaviour and the Theory of Reasoned Action. The sample size for the study was 86 members selected from North and South Community Based Organizations (CBOs) of Gathiuru forest. The limitations of the study included selection of a sample of the population for the study as opposed to census hence was not generalizable. The researcher assumed that the respondents would be available to answer the questions in the questionnaires and that their responses would be truthful and honest. To carry out this study, a descriptive survey research design was used to achieve the study’s objectives by which both structured closed and open ended questionnaires and document review were used to collect data from the respondents based on the objectives of the study. A content analysis and descriptive analysis were employed to analyze the collected data. The content analysis was used to analyze the respondents’ views. Tables were used to present the collected data for ease of understanding. The study found out that there is a positive correlation between the community participation and forest protection. This infers that community silvicultural practice has the highest influence on forest protection, followed by community user group activities and community patrols in that order. Based on the findings, the study recommends enactment of a National Forest Policy to spell out community scouts training; harmonization of policies of line ministries and diversification on non-consumptive forest products. The findings of this study will help all stakeholders, Kenya Forest Service and Government in decision making and developing appropriate Participatory Forest Management Programs as well as act as an invaluable source of information to scholars