Gender Equity and Social Inclusion in Joint Forest Management: Lessons from Two Indian States
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Gender Equity and Social Inclusion in Joint Forest Management: Lessons from Two Indian States India is a front-runner in developing policies This brief addresses two questions: to engage forest dependent communities in 1) Is JFM, as implemented in two Indian the management of their forest lands. Under landscapes, equitable? India’s Joint Forest Management (JFM) programme, the state, represented by the 2) How can gender equity and social Forest Department (FD), and the village inclusion be improved in JFM? community formally share responsibilities and benefits of jointly protecting and Project Landscapes and Peoples managing forests adjoining villages. The This brief explores local perceptions of equity agreement is operationalized through JFM within the JFM governance model as Committees (JFMCs)– referred to as Village implemented in Uttara Kannada District, Forest Committees (VFCs) in some states – Karnataka, and Mandla District, Madhya Pradesh. where elected community representatives Uttara Kannada is home to a lush and bio-diverse tropical rainforest and a relatively well and a FD official make forest-related functioning Joint Forest Management (JFM) decisions in a supposedly collaborative programme. According to a local FD official, 80 manner. In some cases, when women percent of the district is under forest cover and participate in forest management 300 permanent staff as well as 300 temporary staff manage the district’s 170,000 ha of forest. committees, these institutions have been shown to enhance forest conditions (Agrawal and Chhatre 2006; Agarwal 2009), incomes from the forest (Upadhyay 2005), and cooperation in forest management (Molinas 1998; Coleman and Mwangi 2013). Yet, despite reserved seats on JFMCs for marginalized groups such as women, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Schedule Tribes (STs), these groups face significant barriers to active engagement in JFM processes (Agarwal 2010).1 1 These are official government designations for various groups of historically disadvantaged peoples in India. The local population consists mainly of composed of STs (Census of India 2011). RESULTS native Hindus (70%) of different castes The state’s main ethnic groups include the (hereditary social groups or classes in Gondh (ST), Baiga (a Particularly Site-specific Participation in JFM Hindu culture), with 8.1% of the Vulnerable Tribal Group – PVTG), Panchas population coming from SCs and 2.4% (Other Backward Classes or ‘OBCs’), and There are important contextual from STs (Census of India 2011). These Lohars (OBC), among others. These groups differences in JFM implementation across groups show differences in terms of show different levels of dependency on the two project sites. In Uttara Kannada, landholdings as well as in education, socio the forest, but as small-scale or landless the forest is lush, livelihood opportunities -economic and political opportunities. The laborers they all depend on the forest for are more readily available, and there is a larger landholders are from the Havik subsistence. history of environmental activism dating Brahmin Hindu community (highest social back to the Appiko movement. There, class in the ritual hierarchy), who are participants as well as the FD report some more privileged on the whole than the Methodology success with JFM. In contrast, others. The small landholders and landless interviewees in Mandla describe a severe are predominantly from the lower castes In depth, semi-structured interviews lack of livelihood options, a sense of and from ST communities—also known as about local forest governance were helplessness with respect to their forest’s Adivasis or ‘original inhabitants’. These carried out privately with 45 participants degradation, and a dysfunctional JFM groups show a different level of in six villages—five that have a Village system. Few people really know about dependency on forests, with forest Forest Committee (VFC) and one that does JFM and participation in JFM is low across reliance being higher among the landless not—in Uttara Kannada and with 41 ethnic and gender groups due to a lack of than among large-scale farmers. In the participants in five villages in Mandla, all interest, incentives, awareness and Uttara Kannada area, STs comprise various of which have a JFM Committee. Male and influence. One (male) FD official notes ethnic groups, including the Marathi, female participants, in nearly equal that, “There is no interest. The secretary Naiks, Poojari, Sherugars, and Siddhi, who numbers, included local farmers from informs the people, but they aren’t participated in this study. different ethnic, socio-economic and age interested.” This disinterest, which is The district of Mandla is located in the groups, Forest Department (FD) officials, reflected in the narratives of local state of Madhya Pradesh, which has the board members from the VFCs, VFC residents, stems from a lack of faith in the highest amount of forest cover in India Presidents, members of the Panchayat system for many reasons described below. and the largest ST population living in the (local self-government organization), forest and in forest fringe areas. forest conservation NGO staff, and 1. No sense of forest ownership Compared to Uttara Kannada, Mandla is women’s self-help group members. Data drier and its people are poorer and have underwent inductive thematic coding Participants lack knowledge about the less formal schooling. The majority (57.9 using NVivo software to support the Forest Rights Act (FRA) (2006), which percent) of the district’s population is analysis. allows traditional forest dwellers (SCs and sometimes women of a particular ethnic group occupy seats reserved for their specific group. In Uttara Kannada, Havik Brahmin women occupy the seats reserved for women. Yet, women are not typically nominated to fill non-reserved seats. Women from the SC, ST and OBC communities in particular are very involved in forest- related activities. In Mandla, they report having frequent confrontations with, and braving the FD when collecting fuelwood in the forest. An FD official from the Mandla landscape states that of all local user groups, Baiga women are the most dependent on the forest. Hence, their interests clearly need to be represented in JFM. In practice, however, a number of barriers hinder the active participation of women in JFM. Aside from being on the VFC board, the main forum for having a voice in JFM is as a general VFC member. All adult women and men over the age of 18 who pay a symbolic fee are considered members. Most VFCs reportedly meet monthly or bi -monthly for board meetings and annually for the general assembly. Relations with the FD are particularly STs) to claim for individual and Formally influencing the group requires strained in Mandla, where the FD is highly community land ownership in the form of attending, speaking up, and being discriminatory against STs. pattas (land titles). Hence, one middle- listened to in VFC meetings, where aged Gondh man explains that people women are largely outnumbered by men. “are under pressure. […] the Deputy 3. Inactivity of, and lack of knowledge Ranger tells us that; “the jungle is not about, the JFMCs Opinions about women’s engagement at your land and so you have to do what we meetings are mixed, as some participants say or else we will kick you out.” Lack of Many villagers report that the JFMC in report that women are listened to and knowledge about their rights—and lack of their village is barely active, if at all. When respected, but the majority indicates formal rights to land—makes people VFCs carry out meetings, many residents otherwise. Participants cite numerous reticent to truly engage, and express are not aware of them. barriers to women’s active participation dissent, through JFM. Given the lack of at these meetings, including: incentives or sense of ownership over the 4. Competing priorities forest and its management, a number of 1. ‘Women are too busy’ participants believe that they should be Participants indicate that they have too getting paid to monitor the forest or to many other problems to deal with, such as “It is a combination of already having a be part of the JFM committee as “No one a water shortage and unemployment, and day-filling workload and time constraints is going to work for free” (Gondh man, that those who do attend meetings make for participating in evening meetings. The Mandla). requests but “No one comes here to help” (Gondh woman, Mandla). same is true for women members of the VFC board. They will have daily 2. Conflictual relations with the FD responsibilities that they cannot just put down to attend a meeting” (male Khare Participants experience conflicts with the Gendered Participation in JFM Vokkaliga farmer, Uttara Kannada). FD and feel that they lack influence over Within a given site, there are gender- JFM so they see little point in attending specific constraints to participation in JFM. meetings. As an older Gondh man In theory, JFM is designed to encourage 2. Meetings are held at inconvenient explains, “The meetings are just for the the representation and participation of times people of the VFC, they are just a women and of different ethnic groups. formality. Basically, the FD does all of the There are provisions for women on the Women cannot easily attend meetings in administrative stuff. Sometimes some of board of VFCs. In the study villages, the evenings, when they are busiest with the village people say something, but the women are occupying seats reserved for childcare, dinner preparations and FD doesn’t really listen to them.” them (at least 2 seats out of 10 or 11) and milking cows. 3. Limited mobility 6. Lack of formal education, Ethnic Exclusions in JFM confidence and capacity to Women “cannot ride motorbikes or cars participate in public fora Ethnicity also strongly shapes so they are limited in moving around and participation in JFM. In terms of coming to the meetings” (male VFC In Uttara Kannada, formal education (early representation, there are seats reserved president, Uttara Kannada).