Potential for community- based forest resource management in Uganda: The case of non-gazetted forests of Hoima and Masindi Districts, western Uganda

Abstract

Uganda’s forest resources are important for the country’s growth and development. Though there is in place a mechanism for controlled use of gazetted forests, lack of an organised management institution has left common pool non-gazetted communal forest resources at the helm of uncontrolled use. The study covered the districts of Hoima and Masindi where non-gazetted communal forest resources are abundant. The overall objective of this study was to identify a tenure system that can lead to sustainable use of communal forest and tree resources by the local people and seek people’s attitudes towards increased involvement in the management of natural resources in their localities. The respondents in both Masindi and Hoima overwhelmingly rejected the idea of leasing the forests. Loss of access rights to the resource was cited as a major reason for rejecting this form of tenure. The communities preferred to own the resource in common, thus advocating for a common property tenure. It was therefore recommended that non-gazetted forest resources be left to the local user groups to manage through a locally composed and constituted community association with assistance from the Forest Department.