Community Forestry

In Nepal, the main forest management strategy is community forestry, a strategy that encourages active participation of local people in managing production and distribution of forest products. Since 1980, about 14,000 Community Forest User Groups have been formed.

Source: Source: World Resources Institute (2011) A Compilation of Green Economy Policies, Programs, and Initiatives from Around the World. The Green Economy in Practice: Interactive Workshop 1, February 11th, 2011

In Nepal, the main forest management strategy is community forestry, a strategy that encourages active participation of local people in managing production and distribution of forest products. Local people are organized into Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs). In this approach, local users develop their own operation plans, set harvesting rules, set rates and prices for products, and determine how surplus income is spent. The government facilitates efforts and provides support. Since 1980, about 14,000 CFGUs have been formed in Nepal.

Local resource rights are granted to community forest user groups through a series of policies including the Master Plan for the Forestry Sector prepared in 1989, the Forest Act of 1993, the Forest Regulations of 1995, and the Forestry Sector Policy of 2000. The Forest Act and Forest Rules accelerated the transfer of forests to forest user groups; they provide the legal basis for the implementation of community forestry and recognize CFUGs as self-governing autonomous corporate bodies for managing and using community forests.

The policies increased employment and income generation from forest protection, tree felling and log extraction, as well as non-timber forest products. It improved access to sustained forest fuel sources, access to microcredit, access to local decision-making processes, and forest management and cover contribute to nature conservation. It also enhanced soil and water management.