An irrigation channel in the Jaomat of Voru is providing water for the reforestation of 12 ha of degraded area along a hillside between the villages Voru and Ghazza. Twelve residents of the village Voru have signed an agreement with the local State Forest Enterprise under the Joint Forest Management Approach.
The JFM Approach is based on the local population – either individuals or groups – to become involved in forest management and support the rehabilitation of degraded natural forests over the long term. These individuals or groups sign a contract for the land use rights with the SFE for a period of 20 years, with the possibility for prolongation. This encourages the tenants to sustainably manage and rehabilitate their forest plot of usually 1-2 ha in size.
In addition to the contract, management and annual plans serve as tools for forest management planning and for the monitoring of activities and results. They are developed jointly by the SFE and the respective tenant for each individual plot.
Further, the annual plan specifies the harvest shares of the SFE and the forest tenant according to a fair sharing principle defined in the contract. The management plan, developed, for a 5-year period, specifies long-term goals, such as the installation of an irrigation channel or the diversification of the forest plot.
First trees will be planted in November this year according to a plantation scheme developed jointly with the local forester. Till the forest has grown to provide benefits, such as nuts, berries and fruits, to the local population, the forest users receive financial support based upon their plantation scheme. The main objective of the Saving Book Approach is the reforestation of severely degraded forest areas in collaboration with the local population. It was developed as an incentive system to bridge the high labour cost/low-income phase of reforestation activities.
Therefore, the time horizon of SBA varies depending on the site-specific conditions. The center piece of the approach design is the establishment of deposit accounts for tenants participating in reforestation of a specific area. Clear goals for achieving reforestation (such as fencing, planting, irrigation infrastructure, maintenance etc.) are formulated by the participating parties, which are a strict precondition for the withdrawal of the annual share. Only if the results of a joint monitoring visit of the activities are positive, the annual share can be withdrawn by the tenant.