IMPLEMENTING PARTNERS
• JVC
• DF & W
• LEUCAENA
• MLUP BAITONG
• RNRMAN
Japanese International Volunteer Cooperation (JVC)
Community Management Of Tonle Sap Fishery And Flood Forest
Looking at policy formulation and how it could translate into concrete reforms on the ground, JVC has decided to conducted an action research and information analysis on the flood forests and communities of Tonle Sap. The research will look into installed mechanisms and processes for implementation at the national and provincial levels. At the community level, it will study how the reform plan responds to people's actual needs.
Detailed case studies will also be necessary to develop a strategy that will support community aquatic resource management and address conflicts in resource uses. The activities under this component will rely heavily on participatory research in order to gather the necessary information including the identification of stakeholder communities and other groups that need to participate in fishing lot management dialogs; a detailed description of resource use practices related to fishing lots and the flood forest; a history of resource management in the fishing lots including prior systems of rights and responsibilities; the spatial distribution of fishing lots and use-areas of different communities; and the de facto areas of control and management. From these and further dialogues, JVC will help the stakeholders of selected fishing lots identify management problems and concerns, urgent and long-term needs, and opportunities to maintain and develop the area.
A third component will involve collecting information and experiences related to CFCs around Tonle Sap and sharing these with the Department of Forestry (DOF), the Provincial Office of Fishery (POF), NGOs, and other international donors such as FAO, ADB and the Japanese government). This will allow these different agencies to give more focused attention in promoting CBNRM for the benefit of local fishers and the conservation of the environment including the flooded forests. Selected model cases will be used to promote sustainable practices and strengthen the capacity of POF and local NGOs to adopt and apply them in their CFC initiatives. Finally, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of this capacity building assistance to POF, local NGOs, and CFCs will also be an important part of JVC's activities in Tonle Sap.
Action Research On Community Fishery Around Tonle Sap Lake
A more focused approach to capacity-building for selected CFCs, particulary in Kampong Chhnang Province will form the next phase of activities for JVC. Different approaches will be undertaken including:
- Engaging Kampong Chhnang's Provincial Office of Fisheries in dialogues regarding a bottom-up approach to providing support to CFCs.
- Organizing exchange visits and workshops involving Kampong Chhnang CFCs and other villages practicing sustainable agriculture.
- Updating the CFC handbook to include new fishery laws and the CF management sub-decrees.
- Inviting members of Leucaena, a Japanese NGO supporting CFCs in Battambang to act as technical resource persons and share their experiences with Kampong Chhnang CFCs and JVC.
- Sharing learnings with the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Environment, and donor agencies such as the Japanese government, ADB, and FAO, and other possible support mechanisms.
The outcome of these approaches will indicate whether they can be spread to, and adopted by other villages around the Tonle Sap area.
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Department of Forestry and Wildlife - Cambodia (DF&W)
Participatory Spatial Planning And Management Approaches For Degraded Forests
DF&W is currently dedicated to the development of capacities and skills of its staff. This support has also been extended to local government and selected forest communities to bring about a greater proficiency in applying participatory approaches to planning and management. Cases of participatory resource management planning and mapping in neighboring countries are also being compiled and seriously studied in order to identify approaches which may be appropriate for Cambodia. Field visits to other countries is also adopted as a strategy to support the findings in the case studies and to give a firsthand look at how participatory resource management is being implemented.
Participatory tools such as handbooks and manuals are being translated into the local language to make these more accessible to forest communities. With participation by these communities and district officials, DF&W hopes to facilitate the formation of formal or informal groups or associations for forest resource management in villages and communes. This may then lead to a process for developing commune development management plans with guidance from DF&W.
Identifying problems in the field will allow for a better understanding of how forestry policies are working or failing. Together with the Provincial Forestry Office (District Forestry Office) and the Commune Councils of local forest communities, DF&W hopes to be able to address these policy issues and strengthen policy implementation by community forestry practitioners in the country.
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Leucaena
Participatory Natural Environmental Conservation In And Around Tonle Sap Lake
Leucaena is in the process of documenting and supporting sustainable management practices in Tonle Sap's fishing lots as part of the broader goal of conserving the natural environment in and around the Lake. Leucaena intends to gather information on the fisheries sector and develop a process of collaboration between CFCs and local authorities to regulate illegal activities which are destroying the natural environment such as illegal fishing, logging, and wild animal hunting.
Exchange visits by community fisheries leaders and staff to selected fisheries communities around the Tonle Sap area will allow challenges and learnings to be shared and discussed. This may then shed some light on the commonalities and differences in the concerns of the various communities and their environs. These visits will be co-sponsored with JVC Phnom Penh.
In cooperation with FACT and ADHOC, environment and human rights education will be promoted for use in village workshops and schools. Meetings and workshops will be facilitated at the village, commune district, and provincial levels for various stakeholders to discuss environmental concerns in the area and facilitate management and action planning processes.
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Mlup Baitong
A National Environment Radio And Advocacy Program - "Somleng Neakphum Sdei Ampie Pakrithan (Voices From The Villages On Environment)
In 2001, Mlup Baitong produced a radio program which was able to bring greater environmental awareness to local communities especially in the areas of environmental justice, conservation, and the sustainable use of natural resources. In order to follow up on the success of that initiative, Mlup Baitong now intends to expand its education program for local communities by similarly using short radio programs to present information on public policies, especially new ones which involve participatory resource management, that extend greater rights and responsibilities to natural resource-dependent communities. It is hoped that these radio programs will stimulate community discussions regarding these policies and foster civil society dialog.
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Ratanakiri Community Natural Resource Management Advocacy Network (RNRMAN)
Developing A Strong And Combined Voice For Natural Resource Management
The objective of RNRMAN is to support the Ratanakiri Community Natural Resource Management Advocacy Network in providing training and education to their respective communities. RNRMAN believes that giving forest communities the awareness of their rights and opportunities will build solidarity and unity among communities with regard to natural resource management and eventually lead to a more sustainably managed environment.
Thus RNRMAN is developing a program to share and discuss with communities topics such as land and forest rights under Cambodia Law; the importance of community to NRM and vice-versa; tourism and its benefits, problems, and management; forest concessions and their impact on people's rights; and the role of active non-violence. The outcome of these dialogues will be transmitted to policy makers in the National Government and will be particularly relevant to the development and evaluation of policies regarding community forestry and forest concessions.
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