The Programme is a partnership between overnment, Donor organizations, local NGOs and communities. Legislation devolving rights over wildlife and tourism to communal area residents was approved by Parliament in 1996. In 2001 the Forest Act was passed which similarly regulates the rights over forest resources. By encouraging communities to form land management units called conservancies, the programme aims to recreate a common property resource management system for wildlife and tourism related aspects of land management, or community forests after conservancies.

Conservancies

According to the revised legislation, conservancies require:

Defined membership

• A representative management committee

• A legally recognized constitution; and

• Defined boundaries

So far 29 communal area conservancies have been gazetted while more than 30 are in the process of establishment.

Communities that meet the conditions for registration receive limited rights of ownership over certain animal species and use rights over others. These rights are similar to those enjoyed by commercial farmers since 1967. Legally-formed conservancies can also apply for hunting and/or tourism rights within the conservancy.

Community Forests

According to the Forest Act No. 12 of 2001, a community forest is an area within the communal lands of Namibia for which local communities have obtained forest resource management rights from the Minister of the MET. These rights include the commercial use of wood and non-wood forest resources and are based on forest management plans.

Main requirements for the official declaration ("gazetting") of a community forest are:
1. Consent of traditional authorities

2. A forest management body representing the interests of local residents
3. Community forest map indicating geographical boundaries

4. Community forest management plan
5. Documented rights and conditions of use (by laws) to manage the area 
6. Equal use and equal access to the community forest for community members
7. Adequate reinvestment of revenues and equitable use and distribution of surplus

In November 2004, 13 communities signed the first community forest agreements with the Minister of the MET. They await to be gazetted soon, while 15 other community forests are still being established. So far, community forestry programs in Namibia cover an area of approximately 1,390,959 ha. 

Completed and terminated projects

The following project has already been completed in this programme:

• The Northern Namibia Environment project

• WILD Project (Wildlife Integration for Livelihood Diversification)

Linked partners and funding
 

This programme is implemented in partnership with the MET, WWF-US, USAID, the Namibian Association of CBNRM Support Organizations (NACSO) and a variety of conservation and development NGOs as well as established and emerging conservancy committees. Funding has been obtained from USAID and WWF-US and the Namibian Government. Click here for more information on our partners. 

The community forestry programme is implemented and funded in partnership with the Directorate of Forestry of the MET, the Governments of Finland and Germany, local NGO`s, traditional authorities and community based forest management committees.  
 

Staff
 

The majority of this programme is implemented by Namibian GRN, NGO and CBO personnel. Some technical assistance is provided by WWF-US through the LIFE office.

The community forestry programs in Namibia are implemented by Namibian Government personnel in the MET with the assistance of technical advisors from Finland and Germany.
 

Contact
 

1. Jo Tagg (Natural Resource Management)
    
2. Magdalena Jakasita (National Community Forestry Officer)