Assessment of the effectiveness of a community-based conservation approach used by pastoralist villages in Loliondo Division, Northern Tanzania

Abstract

Biodiversity loss is a major threat to life on planet earth today. The major causes of biodiversity loss include habitat loss and degradation, over-exploitation, alien invasive species, climate change and pollution. Globally, the use of Protected Areas (PAs) is a commonly accepted way to reduce the biodiversity loss. Although the use of PAs is widely accepted, they face several challenges—mainly degradation caused by human activities. The human-induced PA challenges are more prevalent in low-income countries where the vast majority of people depend on natural resources. One of the proposed solutions to help reduce the challenges is the use of a community-based conservation (CBC) approach. This study uses a mixed methods research design to assess the effectiveness of a CBC approach employed by pastoralist communities in Loliondo Division in northern Tanzania. The study objectives are to (1) to evaluate the governance effectiveness of the approach, and (2) to evaluate the social-ecological contributions of the approach in Loliondo Division. To achieve its goals, the study uses data from content review, focus group discussion, key informant interviews, and household surveys related to six case study villages. The overall results suggest good quality of governance of the conservation approach; however, there are concerns over performance and transparency of its governing institutions - the village councils. The approach is also perceived to have improved local livelihoods by delivering benefits particularly at the community level rather than at the family level. For biodiversity conservation, the approach is perceived to have contributed to the increased number of wildlife species, protected water sources, and forest cover. The abundance of flagship and endangered species, however, were perceived to have remained low. There are also concerns over local involvement in biodiversity conservation. The results varied among the study villages with the status of the implementation of the conservation projects using the approach being a major factor. All but one of the villages had to cease operations as a result of new government regulations. Based on results from the village where the conservation approach is still active, this thesis concludes that under certain conditions, the CBC approach in Loliondo Division can be an effective approach capable to deliver conservation benefits to the local people as well as reduce the loss of biodiversity. However, more empirical data is required to further study the approach’s contribution to ecological integrity.