Mainstreaming sustainability into biodiversity conservation in Lesotho

Biodiversity conservation is critical for the continued supply of ecosystem services to secure the sustainability of livelihoods, especially for poor rural people in developing countries. Current rates of biodiversity loss need to be curbed by using effective interventions and decision-making that again require timely information. Undertaking a community sustainability assessment to generate and structure this information for grassroots levels is critical for decision-making and actions. This paper presents insights from a community sustainability assessment initiative undertaken in Lesotho within a trans-boundary project area known as the Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Project. A qualitative case study approach was employed through a combination of several data collection techniques, including a literature review, field observations, key informant interviews, group discussions and key informant workshops. Study participants consisted of members of the community conservation forums from three districts that had been established by the project. Regarding progress towards the sustainability of biodiversity in the study area, the results indicated that current practices are unsustainable, more from the point of view of the socio-ecological components than the socio-cultural and spiritual or the socio-economic components. Consequently, there is a need to raise awareness at the community level and implement action plans to realize changes that support the sustainability of biodiversity in the long term.     

Direct use values of communal resources in Bokong and Tsehlanyane in Lesotho: whither the commons?

SUMMARY

This paper presents a comprehensive assessment of the contribution of communal resources to households in Bokong and Tsehlanyane in Lesotho. It argues that communal resources are an extremely important element in the livelihoods of people in the study area. It uses households as units of analysis in order to gain an understanding of the role that communal resources play at the micro level before any extrapolations are made to the regional and national levels. A household survey, guided by a detailed semistructured questionnaire, was used. Ten newly constructed houses and vegetable garden enclosures were sampled to categorize and count all poles used to build them. The amount of thatch grass used in building those houses was also estimated. The results indicated that communal resources play a central role in the livelihoods of people in the area with firewood ($1492), crops ($1363) and wild vegetables ($774) recording the highest annual use values per household^?1 yr^?1. The total present value was estimated at $3899 household^?1 yr^?1 with firewood, crops and wild vegetables constituting 93% of that value. The study further demonstrated that communal resources are used across the entire income spread in the area, thereby negating the general belief that they are a preserve of the poor. Finally, the results demonstrated that very little value is derived through trading of resources both within and outside the area but through direct consumption within households invariably escaping national economic accounting. With declining employment rates in Lesotho due to continued retrenchments in the South African mining industry, communal resources in the country remain an indispensable resource that must be carefully managed for the common good.