An Institutional Framework for Community Participation in Protected Area Management

Abstract

Protected areas are a critical tool for sustainable biodiversity management, but their governance is constrained by the historical exclusion of the local communities and Indigenous Peoples. This paper argues that the effective participation of local stakeholders would make the protected area enterprise socially acceptable, improve its management efficiency and help expand the area of coverage as well. However, the doctrinal acceptance of community participation has to be matched by policy, legal and institutional reforms in order for it to materialise in the field. The institutional options available at the protected area site level, the essential capacity building issues, and the range of engagements that community organisations can be tasked with are examined.

Key words:

• Protected Area (PA) management
• biodiversity
• community participation
• community organization (CO)
• capacity building
• reform