Problem overview:

     Awareness and visions: '...The objective of community forestry was expanded to fulfill the subsistence needs of forest produce, to embrace commercialization and allow the Forest Users Groups to keep the fund generated through the sale of forest produce...'

     Integrating stakeholders: '...In 1976 the government belatedly came up with a National Forest Plan. The new plan acknowledged the importance of local communities and their participation in the protection and development of the forests...'

Background:

      A beneficial twist on "User Pays" principle is "User Earns."

      The fortunes of Nepal's forests are not much different from those of the rest of the planet. And the government has belatedly been aware that without adequate management, their green wealth is doomed. Through 40 years of trial and error, the governments vision for an efficient forestry management plan was reborn on the principle that the people, who are the key stakeholders, would manage the forest and in return harvest the rewards from its use.

      There is an ancient saying, "Green forest in Nepals wealth." Today, forests occupy 5.45 million ha (37%) of Nepal and are still regarded as a major source of revenue. Before 1950 the forests of the Terai plains were systematically cut to fill government coffers. In many hilly regions, local communities managed the forests and made use of the produce for themselves. They used indigenous systems of management, recognized and accepted by the Rana government.

      Forest resources play an important role in the daily life of the people, particularly the rural population. They obtain fuel, fodder, timber, wood fibre, compost, and medicines from the forest.

      In 1957, following a change in government, a new policy nationalized all forests. Local management of the forests ended and twenty years of forest depletion began. In 1976 the government belatedly came up with a National Forest Plan. The new plan acknowledged the importance of local communities and their participation in the protection and development of the forests. The new plan considered forests as social property rather than national property and stipulated the need to obtain cooperation of private individuals, community or Panchayet, in protecting the forest.

      The Government used the elected Village Panchayat as an intermediary. This was not successful because the elected officials could not gain the cooperation of the actual forest users. The bylaws of the Panchayat contained major flaws with regard to authority and sharing of benefits. These were reviewed and a Master Plan for the Forest Sector was designed based on the concept of Forest Users Groups. The basic philosophy was, "the one who protects and manages the forest shall also utilize its products."

      The objective of community forestry was expanded to fulfill the subsistence needs of forest produce, to embrace commercialization and allow the Forest Users Groups to keep the fund generated through the sale of forest produce.

      The Forest Act of 1993 and the Forest Rule of 1995 are based on the policies and programmes of the Master Plan. Under these new regulations, the community forestry programme is advancing rapidly. Almost all districts of the country have been included in the programme and the area now under community forest has reached 449,637 ha with 732,415 households and 6658 Forest Users Groups.