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Participation of Major Stakeholders in the Conservation of the Makiling Forest Reserve
Abstract:
The study aimed to formulate a set of criteria for determining the major stakeholders in the Makiling Forest Reserve (MFR) in the Philippines, identify the major stakeholders and their stakes, and determine the degree of satisfaction of major stakeholders as well as the nature and extent of their actual partici pation in the MFR's conservation. It also sought to relate the major stakeholders' degree of satisfaction with their extent of actual participation in the MFR's conservation and to recommend policy measures that may enhance participation of stakeholders in the conservation and management of the MFR.
Phase 1 of the study surveyed 210 individuals and 60 institutional respondents (key informants) while Phase II had 60 MFR resident farmers, 50 organizations, and 30 University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB) employees as respondents. The respondents identified 12 types of stakes in the MFR: aesthetic, ag ri cu ltural crops, amenities, employment, good environment, forest plant products, protection, recreation, research and training laboratory, settlement, and water. The MFR stakeholders had varied stakes but the most common of them was water.
Based on the number of stakes, duration of stakeholding, degree of dependency, and degree of accountability, the following were identified as major MFR stakeho lders: MFR resident farmers; leaseholders; local government units; schools; and farmer, private/non-government, student, and government organizations (including UPLB). The majority of them were participating in the implementation of programs and activities related to the MFR 's conservation. Some UPLB employees and key informants (KIs) among respondent institutions were involved in extension and research activities while only a few UPLB employees were involved to a limited extent in the planning/decision-making process of the MFR programs and activities.
The resident farmers had a high degree of satisfaction in attaining their stakes but had a moderate extent of actual participation in the MFR's conservation. The Kls and UPLB employees also had a high degree of satisfaction in attaining their stakes and the extent of their participation in the MFR's conservation.
Suggested interventions to enhance participations in the MFR 's conservation were met with varied reactions. The resident farmers preferred a "taxational/rental system," Kls wanted the creation of a multisectoral body for the MFR, and UPLB employees wanted the strengthening ofUPLB's administrative capability.
The study produced a conceptual framework of a proposed participatory resource conservation and management (PRCM) strategy for the MFR. Since water was the most common stake among the MFR stakeholders, a conservation program focusing on water resources was suggested as an immediate concern under such strategy.