Rural Development Policies and Sustainable Land Use in the ...

2 CHAPTER 1
Box 1.1 Defining “Hillsides,” “Hillside Areas,” and “Valleys”
Hillsides are defined as areas with slopes of more than 12 percent (PRONADERS
2000). Hillside areas include not only hillsides but also flat-floored valleys, 300 to 900
meters in elevation, which are scattered throughout the interior hillsides. “Valleys” refer
mainly to the lowland areas in the north and northwest of the country, which are generally
considered as high-potential areas for agriculture. In Honduras, hillside areas
account for roughly 80 percent of the total land area where the major economic activity
consists of smallholder farming focusing on production of basic grains, coffee, and livestock.
Agricultural potential in hillside areas varies with agroecological factors such as
elevation, rainfall, and soil characteristics. However, compared to areas with lower slope
and elevation, agricultural options in hillside areas are constrained. Rather than profit
maximization, food security is the most important objective of most smallholder households
living in hillside areas. Many hillside areas also have less access to transport
infrastructure and services.
not only adversely impact farmers’ incomes
but also have negative off-farm consequences
such as silting of rivers, resulting in flooding,
reduced water quality, and diminished
reservoir capacity.
It is not always clear what interventions
are needed to foster sustainable land use and
land management practices in the hillside
areas or what interventions will have the
greatest impact on poverty reduction. The
main factors that drive the adoption of soil
conservation measures in the hillside areas
in Honduras, and how the provision of training
affects returns to land and income, have
yet to be clearly and conclusively identified.
Despite a few localized success stories, 3 the
rate of adoption of soil conservation measures
in the hillside areas is generally low,
and identifying the technical, institutional,
environmental, and socioeconomic factors
that condition farmers’ adoption behavior is
important for designing promising policies
that could stimulate such practices. Understanding
the complex relationships among
growth, poverty, and sustainable resource use
(Vosti and Reardon 1997) is crucial to identifying
effective strategies and policies to
improve the livelihoods of the inhabitants of
the rural hillside areas in Honduras. This
report seeks to improve that understanding.
Background
Honduras has a total population of 6.8 million
people and a relatively high population
growth rate of 2.6 percent per year. Per capita
income is US$920 per year (data refer to
2002; see World Bank 2004b). Social indicators
such as child malnutrition rate (17
percent), life expectancy at birth (66 years),
child mortality rate (32 per 1000 births),
and literacy rate (less than three quarters of
the population) are among the poorest in the
Latin America and Caribbean region. Honduras
has acquired Highly Indebted Poor
Country (HIPC) status and prepared a
Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP)
in 2001. Honduras reached the so-called
completion point in April 2005, which qualifies
the country for major debt relief and
3
See, for example, Deugd (2000) for a description of an agroforestry-based system in the province of Lempira
that combines productivity-improving and soil conservation components. See also Cárcamo, Alwang, and Norton
(1994) for descriptions of some successes of the former USAID-supported Land Use and Production Enhancement
(LUPE) project in the steep hillsides near Tegucigalpa.