Contribution of Forestry to Poverty Alleviation - APFNet

to meet the expenses during community forestry activities. Similarly, Chetri et. al. (2009) reported that
local communities generate substantial benefits from community forests through the sale of timber,
firewood, and NWFPs. However, to realize the full potential of community forests, simplified procedures
for the communities’ sale of timber and other forest products and services are required. Others report
that establishing hundreds of community forests will be a major provider of rural employment that can
draw unemployed people in urban areas to the villages and make living in rural villages economically
attractive (Namgyel 2010). As of now, only a few community forestry groups can generate excess
timber but many derive benefits as workers paid on a daily wage basis for planting, fire line creation,
and nursery activities. Wangdi and Tshering (2006) describe increased community participation in
three community forests and earnings worth Nu 752,400 from labor contribution.
Private Forests
With the enactment of the Forest and Nature Conservation Act 1995 and the Private Forestry Rules 2006
legalizing private forests, a number of farmers from various parts of the country applied for private
forests. In the west central region, 66 and 25 households in Dagana and Tsirang, respectively, submitted
their applications. Although community forestry has significantly advanced, private forestry is far from
taking off. Discussions with private forest owners and survey findings reveal that the people’s interest
and willingness to own private forests is in direct response to forest resources security due to the rapid
socio-economic and institutional changes, notably the enabling legal framework. Private forests are
grown in private land, thus tenure and resource security are more assured than in community and
government reserve forests. Private forests can contribute to food security in many ways. The types
of trees commonly selected for planting in private forests include those for household use and those of
commercial value, mainly fast-growing trees. The species desired for timber (for house building) are
Michalea champaca, Juglans regia and Cupressus corneyana; for firewood (for cooking and heating),
Alnus nepalensis, Castanopsis and Quercus griffithii; for tree fodder (for cattle feeding), Ficus
roxburghii, Ficus cunia, Saurauja nepalensis; and for grass fodder, Thysanolaena latifolia commonly
known as tiger grass. Timber and firewood in excess of household use can be sold for cash income
as per the private forest rules. Integration of multi-purpose trees and grasses in the private forests is
beneficial. For example, broom grass not only provides winter fodder but also raw materials for making
commercial brooms. This indicates that more than community forestry, private forests have a huge
potential to take on board and demonstrate forest management that is closer to the people, to guarantee
forest resources security, and to reduce poverty.
Commercial and Industrial Forestry
Non-Wood Forest Products
Non-wood forest products feature prominently in the 10 th FYP of the RGoB as a strategy toward achieving
the overarching policy goal of poverty reduction (SFD 2008). It clearly states the “establishment of
community forests and expansion of commercial harvesting of NWFPs.” Within the strategic framework,
the policy objective for NWFP development is “strengthening agricultural marketing mechanisms to
expand local markets for primary produce and enhance export of NWFPs and other low-volume, highvalue
products with specialization, standardization, and certification.” Based on this, the forest subsector
program outlines strategies to sustain the resource base and income from NWFPs (Box I.2).
Box I.2. Forestry sub-sector plans for NWFP development
• Formulation of the national strategy for NWFP development;
• Development of methodologies for assessing NWFPs that best suit local circumstances;
• Development of management guidelines for prioritized NWFPs and training of local
government and communities in sustainable management;
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