Sustainable poverty alleviation through a forestry project in Tamilnadu State of India

The World Development Report 2000–2001 recommends action on three complementary and synergistic fronts for poverty alleviation – promoting opportunity, facilitating empowerment and enhancing security. This paper analyses the Tamilnadu Forestry Project, funded by US$100 million from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, for community forestry. The project was launched in 1997–1998 in this southern state of India and has evolved into a comprehensive poverty alleviation programme for the forest abutting villages where the proportion of poor people is largest. It endeavours to explain how the project provides the above three elements at the local level for sustainable poverty alleviation. Regeneration of forests, improvement of basic infrastructure through integration of line departments and promotion of alternate livelihoods provide ample economic opportunities. Establishment of Village Forest Councils, and delegation of sufficient powers to these Councils, has empowered the poorest of the poor. Tree assets, promotion of alternate income generation activities and water harvesting structures have provided security by reducing vulnerability to natural vagaries, particularly drought. In this project, the restoration of biodiversity and people development go hand in hand in a synergistic way that makes the project worth replicating elsewhere in the country and other parts of the world, with suitable modifications.     

Eco-Environmental benefit assessment of the western route in China's South-North Water Transfer Project

Assessing the benefits of China's South-North Water Transfer project (SNWT) requires successful integration of an analysis of economic and eco-environmental benefits (EEB). To attain such integration, it is necessary to assess the EEB in detail, after the economic benefits have also been thoroughly assessed. The shadow engineering and market value methods are the major EEB assessment methods used in this study. We have assessed the EEB of the forest and grassland ecosystems in the recipient regions of the Western Route Project (WRP) for 2020, 2030 and 2050. Finally, some proposals are also made for efficient and sustainable management of the WRP.     

Why did the project fail to achieve its objectives in some villages? The experience of the Upland Settlement Project (USP) in Bangladesh

By sampling an upland settlement project (USP) village, this study examined why the project failed to achieve the planned objectives in some villages, and what livelihood strategies villagers (planters) have adopted to sustain their livelihoods. The paper uses data obtained by qualitative and quantitative methods. The USP was formulated with the objectives of settling 50 landless and marginal tribal families in a project village and introducing agroforestry and rubber plantations for short- and long-term socioeconomic development of planters, in a participatory manner. There are now only 15 planters in the project village and, although agroforestry has progressed well, only 30 to 40% of poor quality rubber trees remain. Planter participation in project activities was limited to wage labour, indicating that the USP failed to adequately achieve all its proposed objectives. In the face of project failure, planters have adopted diversified strategies to maintain their livelihoods. Several shortcomings caused failure of the project, such as the inability of project staff members to organize planters, failure to create awareness among planters about project benefits, lack of regular project money disbursement, sociocultural ignorance, and lack of social capital among planters. Recommendations are made for securing effective participation of local people to assure successful and sustainable project outcomes. Lessons learned will be helpful in formulating future development programmes in this country and elsewhere.