Non-timber forest product utilization for livelihood of people : a case from Baitadi District, Nepal | |
| Author | Bista, Sagun |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.NR-05-09 |
| Subject(s) | Non-timber forest products--Marketing--Nepal Institutional market--Nepal |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Thesis ; no. NR-05-09 |
| Abstract | Sustainable use of NTFP has been affected by several factors such as policy, regulatory mechanism, local institutions, external agencies, infrastructure including road and market. But there is a very little understanding of role of these factors in NTFP use. Studies in Far Western Development Region of Nepal, was mainly neglected in the past because of its remoteness and difficult geographic structure and at present the area is neglected because of the Maoist insurgency. Considering this fact the study was conducted in 12 villages of Baitadi district to understand the role of market accessibility and institutions on NTFP utilization, which would ultimately affect the livelihood of people. The villages for the study were selected purposively and categorized into four types, considering the strength of the institution working in the village for sustainable utilization of NTFP and the distance to the nearest NTFP market from the village. Household survey, interview with different stakeholders of NTFPs and PRA tools were applied to gather information. Insufficient food production in the village made people to generate income from other sources. There was a very high contribution of NTFP in providing employment and in generating household income. Sixteen species of multipurpose NTFPs used by households played an important role in people's life in the remote villages. Though there were many services delivered by institutions, not many households were aware about legalities related to NTFP use. There were total ten institutions across the studied villages ranging from zero to five institutions in different types of villages. Different services were being provided and several improvements were observed in NTFP utilization. Very few household members were benefiting from the institutional services in the villages with weak institutions compared to those with strong institutions. The institutions were focusing on management of NTFPs. The sustainable use of NTFP had reduced the income of collectors in the short run. No institution was providing storage or other value addition facility to the collectors, which could help in generating more income from NTFP. The DFO service was inaccessible to most of the collectors, was one of the major reasons for inaccessibility of collector to the markets outside the district. The NTFP market channel in Baitadi was a complex network of stakeholders. Tanakpur in India and Nepalganj were the destination market for Baitadi NTFPs. The history of commercial use of NTFP was not very old in the study area. The NTFP trade was not organized. There was no written agreement between traders and collectors about the price and quantity of NTFPs. Outside traders had price fixing power. Middlemen or agents of outside traders paid royalty and dealt directly with collectors, monopolized the NTFP trade. The price received by the collectors depended on where and under which situation the collector sold the NTFPs and profit from it depended on the price and the cost associated with the NTFP collection. The bargaining power of each stakeholder was situation specific. No NTFP collector in the study area had access to the market outside district. Even most of the middlemen and road head traders had access only up to Attaria. Because of the Maoist insurgency the traditional marketing channel was changing. There was the decreasing competition among the traders at local level in some places. The findings of this research have the following implications for designing the policy and management strategies for NTFPs. a. Since sustainable utilization of NTFP does not provide immediate income to the households and there are limited options for income generation, income generating activities such as value addition to NTFPs and storage facility will motivate people for sustainable utilization of NTFP. b. The activities like research, cultivation and nursery management should be continued to observe the outcome. c. DFO as a regulating body should monitor that the services are delivered proportionately in all the villages. d. DFO should develop some mechanism to deliver effective services to the NTFP collectors. e. Collectors should be made strong and organized rather than shortening the market chain in the specific situation of the study area to generate more income from NTFP. f. A thorough study is needed to understand the benefit sharing of different stakeholders in the complex market channel and marketing practice, so that the strategy can be made to provide more benefit to the households. g. Not very old history of NTFP utilization gives the scope for finding the new species of NTFPs and the plant diversity in general. In the context where lost indigenous knowledge on the use of natural resources is a big concern, use of new NTFPs in the study area would be important to make specific strategy for the development in this area. |
| Year | 2005 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Thesis ; no. NR-05-09 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Natural Resources Management (NRM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Webb, Edward L.; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Schmidt-Vogt, Dietrich ;Shivakoti, Ganesh Prasad ; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Government of Norway (NORAD); |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2005 |