Integrating forest and farm for food security and climate resilience

Can Agroforestry address food security concerns under a changing climate? Chalmers University of Technology

11-12 Nov 2014

• Naya S Paudel

• Yub R Subedi

• Swoyambhu M Amatya

Nepal: economy and resources

One of the poorest countries, with: Population

26.6m Area

147,181 sq. km Farming population >75% GDP from Agri 33% Forest Area

40% Agricultural land 21%

Forest

Agriculture

Non-cultivated

Grassland

Others

governmentmanaged

communitymanaged

Land use ratio

Forest tenure

Major agroforestry systems (farm based)

• Inter cropping with horticulture trees

• Trees in/around agricultural fields

• Home garden (plain and hills)

• Agri-silvi-pastoral system

• Silvo-fishery

• Api-culture: trees and bees

• Seri-culture: trees and silkworms

Higher elevation (1500-3000m)

• rainfed terraces know as ‘Bari’

• steeper terraces ‘pakho bari’

• maize, millet, and rainfed crop

• fodder and forage

Agriculture in the hillsLower elevation (<1500m)

• settlement in bottom of hill

• flat, irrigated terraced- 'khet‘

• paddy, vegetables

Common agroforestry systems (forest based)

• Silvi-pastoral system (Mountains)

• Crops under forest trees/fruit trees

• Alley cropping

• Shifting cultivation

• Small woodlots

Compartmentalised management undermines environmental integrity

DoF

Dept of Road

Land reform

Irrigation

Agriculture

DNPWC

Dept-Soil conservation

Environment

Ministry of water resources

Dominant understanding of forests

• The modern notion of 'forest’ represented a special category of land that was largely managed for power, pleasure and rentals by the kings and novelties (Fay and Michon 2005).

• This notion narrowly valued tree, vegetation and biomass which gradually became an ideology that neither respects ecosystem integrity nor socio-economic & cultural values of any society (Michon et al. 2007).

• Forest authorities appear generally less concerned with the local and national economies (Kennedy et al. 2001).

• It often considers agriculture, its associated activities and actors such as peasants and local communities as enemy (Westoby 1979).

National forest policy and regulatory framework were shaped accordingly

• Nationalization (Forests in 1957; pasture land in 1982)

• Expansion of protected areas (now a quarter of landmass)

• Forest as strict, sacred sites (Forest Act 1961, forest policy 1976,

Forest Act 1991, NPWC Act 1973)

• Sustainability of a forest patch (Conservative management plans;

conservation calculation of AAH)

• Restrictive regulation: (in management, harvesting, tourism,

hydropower, etc.)

• Kept distance with farming (discourage tea, coffee, cardamom)

• 40% forestland intact (in new forest sector strategy)

CF regulations discourage food crops

Regulations Provisions

Forest Regulations 1995 article 28 (2)

CFUGs can plant cash crops which yields products for a long time other than food crops in the Community Forest without adversely affecting the crown cover and production of the main forest product

Forest Regulations 1995 article 31 Prohibits: To clear Forest areas for agricultural purposes’ (31, b);

To build huts and houses (31, c)

CF Guidelines 2009, Annex 8

No agricultural crop can be grown in CF land. However, cash crops such as fodder, grass, cardamom, broom grass, medicinal plants and fruit trees can be grown in land allocated to the identified poor households

CF Guidelines 2009, Annex 10 (15)

Perennial Plants other than food crops, such as bamboo, fruits, NTFPs can be grown in CF in condition that it would not affect the density and production of main forest products.

CF Guidelines 2009, Annex 14 (2)

No cereal crop (e.g. rice, maize…) and those crops which involved tilling of land (e.g. ginger, turmeric…) can be grown in CF land

Restrictive measures endanger wider sustainability

Farming relies on distant manufactured inputs

• Rice straw from Terai

• Feed from India

• Broiler chicken replaced goat (every inputs imported)

• Tractors replaced ploughs

• Chemical fertilizer replaced manure

Induced import of timber and fuel

• Timber (Malaysia, Thailand, Cameroon)

• Furniture (mainly from China)

• Aluminum (India)

• Kerosene/LP gas (esp. in ACAP)

CFUG

NAPA, Climate Change Policy, REDD+ Strategy UNFCCC

National government

Some observation

• Forest management in general and community forestry in particular provide little support to food security

• The narrow conceptualisation of forest has shaped regulatory provisions that discourage forest-farm integration

• Compartmentalised and departmentalised land use policies and practice has undermined broader sustainability

• Clear, comprehensive and secure tenure with supportive policy and institutions help enhance forest-farm linkages towards sustainability and productivity

Our approach to research for food security and environment

PAR at site level

Reflective synthesis of the knowledge

Policy dialogue

RoundtablePresentation

Media engagementContribute through task force, working

groups

Informed policy

process

Epistemic community

Improved policy and practice in

NRM

Empowering communities, networks

Forest Act amendment bill: A successful case

Media reports FECOFUN protest

Policy round table Discussion paper

Government proposal

Field research

Amendment bill withdrawn

Restructuring of ADS

Government Started ADS

Politicise/publicise the issue

Policy engagement

We reviewed the process and content

Alliances with networks

Media engagement

Policy advocacy on:

Agriculture Development

Strategy