Community Ownership and Institutional Mechanisms to Develop Common Property Resources and Enhance Livelihoods
Grassland type Semi-natural
Name of practice Community Ownership and Institutional Mechanisms to Develop Common Property Resources and Enhance Livelihoods
Name of main actor Kavalas village community, BAIF Development Research Foundation
Type of actor(s) Farmers, Pastoralists, NGOs, Communities
Location India
Agro-ecological region Arid/semi-arid
Sustainability dimension involved Governance, Environmental, Economic, Social
Sustainability sub-themes Participation, Rule of Law, Water, Land, Biodiversity, Investment, Decent Livelihood, Equity
Year of implementation 1991
Description of best practice Common property resources (CPRs) are important for the livelihoods of rural communities. In the village of Kavalas, in Rajasthan (India), livestock rearing is an important livelihood activity. Community pastures are a key resource for meeting community fodder needs. It is estimated that 20% of the income of families below the poverty line is derived from CPRs. The village Panchayat (local government at village level) has pasture lands that all community members have traditional rights to use for grazing animals. However, the fodder availability from these lands is limited due to severe degradation caused by over-use, increasing encroachment and recurring droughts. The shortage of fodder resulted in low productivity of village livestock. To reverse the trend of degradation and develop their CPRs, the village community joined with two NGOs, the BAIF Development Research Foundation and the Rajasthan Rural Institute for Development Management, to establish representative institutional systems and equitable norms for benefit distribution from common lands. With technical and financial support from NGO partners, the village formed a Community Pasture Management Committee (CPMC) to collectively manage the CPRs. The CPMC included representatives from all stakeholder groups: the Gram Panchayat (elected village council), livestock owners, landless people, village representatives from each caste and the BAIF program officer. Through the CPMC, an agreement was reached to contribute one day’s voluntary labour per week to develop the CPR. Land to be developed was demarcated and enclosed, forage grasses were sown and conservation measures undertaken. Challenging issues such as stray grazing were dealt with by imposing fines to be paid to a common corpus fund.
Outcomes and impacts The process of institution building has contributed to each of the environmental, economic, social and governance pillars of sustainability. The project has considerably enhanced the livelihoods of livestock keepers, especially the poor, landless and families living below the poverty line. Regeneration of CPRs has enhanced environmental sustainability. A greater quality and quantity of biomass has improved fodder availability, helped to prevent soil erosion, improved soil moisture and water conservation and created a better microclimate to support plant growth. In the first five years following community interventions, biomass increased from 160 kg/ha to 2,500 kg/ha, providing 15-20% of the total feed requirement of village livestock. Improved year round access to feed and fodder has led to increased livestock numbers and milk production per animal. Increased productivity directly provides more income for livestock keepers. The CPMC has played a pivotal role in ensuring the equitable distribution of economic and social benefits. Further indirect impacts include community empowerment, changes in livestock management practices and improved family nutrition within the village. Acknowledging the success in Kavalas, the state government provided financial support to replicate CPR development in 76 villages in Rajasthan. The NGO has since withdrawn from the project and the community continues to manage the CPR plot successfully. Key learnings from the project highlight the importance of community-led institution and capacity building. Through a participatory process, local communities can play a key role in rehabilitation of CPRs. Secure land rights to the commons and an equitable distribution of benefits are necessary preconditions to encourage long term investments by the community in CPR development. This case-study has been adapted from the Good Practice Note authored by B.G. Rathod, S.E. Pawar and B.R. Patil, published by the South Asia Pro-Poor Livestock Policy Programme: SA PPLPP (2009) Code: INGP31, “Community Ownership and Institutional Mechanism to Develop CPRs and Enhance Livelihoods”. Good Practice Note, Delhi, India. Available: http://sapplpp.org/goodpractices/cpr-livestock/INGP31-community-ownership-and-institutional-mechanisms-to-develop-cprs. The SA PPLPP website features a series of Good Practices and Case Studies from India, Bangladesh and Bhutan: http://sapplpp.org/goodpractices
