| dc.description.abstract | Kakamega forest, the only tropical rainforest in Kenya is divided into three different parts
each under a distinct management approach: a state-led incentive-based approach of the
Forest department (FD), a privately-owned incentive-based approach of a local Quakers
church mission (QCM) and a state-led protectionist approach of the Kenya Wildlife Service
(KWS). Since conservation involves use of resources and distribution of resulting benefits,
economic concerns require that resources be allocated in a way that generates maximum
net benefits. In addition, understanding the distribution of costs and benefits of
conservation among stakeholders is important for informing equity decisions. Cooperation
and support of communities living close to forests is essential for ensuring success of
conservation efforts. However, more often than not, views of local communities are not
systematically elicited, analyzed and incorporated in conservation decisions.
The study applied the framework of cost-benefit analysis to analyze the economic
efficiency and to compare the distribution of costs and benefits among stakeholders under
the three management approaches at the local, national and global levels. The study further
applied the concept of consumer satisfaction to analyze local community satisfaction levels
with, and their perceptions of the three management approaches and factors influencing
them. Further the study investigated the relative importance of different aspects of forest
management offered by forest management agencies to the overall satisfaction of local
communities.
The results indicate that from a global point of view, the three management approaches are
economically efficient. However, from the local and national perspective, the opportunity
costs of conserving the forest outweigh the benefits. The protectionist approach was ranked
highest overall for its performance in forest management by the local communities.
Educated households and those located far from market centers were more likely to be
dissatisfied with all the three management approaches. The location of the households from
the forest margin influences negatively the satisfaction with the protectionist approach
whereas land size had a similar effect on the private incentive-based approach of the QCM.
In general, the three management approaches are perceived in terms of; involvement in
decision-making processes, forest extraction and other mitigation measures and
conservation incentives offered in order of importance. Regression results showed that
these perceptions were influenced by different sets of demographic and socio-economic
factors across the three management approaches.
To correct the skewed burden of conservation costs, appropriate compensatory mechanisms
are needed. Measures should be taken to enhance more participation of people in
conservation processes by all the three management approaches. The overall national
development goals of increasing income earning opportunities by integrating communities
in modern economy and of promoting education could increase their satisfaction with
conservation efforts. | en |
