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Highlights

Planning Workshop for the Drawa Model Area for Community-Based Forest Management

1. Background to Drawa

The Drawa model area for community-based sustainable forest management (CBFM) is located in the centre of Vanua Levu, the second largest island of Fiji. It covers 6,345.5 hectares of mountainous terrain, covered with primary and secondary forest. Most of the area is in the province of Cakaudrove whilst the Macuata province captures the NNW end. The entire model area is under native land tenure, with customary ownership belonging to eleven mataqali (landowning units). There are six main villages of residence for Drawa mataqali members and their households. Two villages - Drawa and Vatuvonu, are located within the model area; another two - Keka and Lutukina, are in the periphery of the area and, located away (north) from the model area, are Batiri and Nayarailagi villages.

In 1994, the Fiji Forestry Department selected the Drawa block as a model site for the sustainable management (SFM) of native forests in Fiji. With the support of the SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry,  the forestry department has been working with the landowners of Drawa to develop a community–based sustainable forest management regime for their natural forests. Training and field activities commenced in 1999. To provide institutional support, a national sustainable forest management working committee was officially formed in 1995. Members include the Fiji Forestry Department (lead agency), the Native Land Trust Board, the landowner representative (Tui Wailevu), the Fijian Affairs Board, the Department of Land Resources and Planning, the Department of Environment, the Department of Regional Development, the Fiji Forest Industries and the SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry Project. In the committee sittings, members from the agencies make binding decisions for the development of the Fiji SFM model.

When the project started, the Drawa Block was under the concession of Fiji Forest Industries (FFI), which expired in 1999. FFI at first maintained their right for extension, based on the old concession agreement of 1964, but after consultations and negotiations, FFI surrendered the Drawa Block in 2003. The Drawa Block is now under the concession of the community-based Drawa Forest Landowners Co-operative Ltd. (DraFCo) thus ensuring legal long-term security and control of their forest resources.

So far, a forest management plan (FMP) has been drawn up for the utilisation of the forest areas and a land use plan (LUP) providing guidelines for non-timber activities, both endorsed by the landowners. The plans were developed through extensive consultations with the Drawa mataqali and all related agencies (government and non-government). The plans provide the regulatory framework for community-based natural resource management. The lead supporting government agencies for the implementation of the plans are the Forestry Department of the Ministry for for Fisheries and Forests, and the Department of Land Resources, Planning and Development of the Ministry of Agriculture, Sugar and Land Resettlement.

It is anticipated that experiences gained from the Drawa model area will help to institutionalise viable community-based sustainable forest management regimes for native forests in Fiji and contribute towards the mainstreaming of participatory rural land use planning in Fiji.

2. The Drawa Forest Managment Plan

The Drawa Forest Management Plan prescribes the operational procedures to be followed for the sustainable management and use of the Drawa forests. The timber resource in the marked “timber production” areas are under the concession of the Drawa Forest Landowners Co-operative and are managed according to the SFM guidelines.

Community and resource owner participation has been a major principle to ensure important “bottom-up feedback” for a viable and acceptable plan. This participatory management planning process is based on the needs and wants analysis of the 11 Drawa mataqali. The National SFM Working Committee contributed significantly to the plan, and consultations during the drafting were held with relevant stakeholders to avoid conflicts in the implementation phase later on.

2.1. Purpose of the Forest Management Plan

• To secure the sustainable multi-functional use of indigenous forest resources a documented medium and long-term management strategy is required.

• This is the first time that an attempt has been made to prepare a long-term management plan for a forest area in Fiji, and this particular one can be looked at as a model for Fiji and for the Pacific region. Based on an analysis of wide range of environmental and socio-economic data, it contains the strategies, goals and activities for a period of 10 years as well as the procedures to implement the plan and achieve the declared goals. Furthermore, indicators and methods are defined for continuous improvements of forest management practice. The plan also serves as a prerequisite for the international recognition and certification of the the Drawa forest management.

• The forest management plan is incorporated into the lease agreement. While the lease agreement is valid for 60 years, the management plan needs a revision after every 10 years. The management plan is the basis for the annual working plans . A mid term evaluation is foreseen every 5 years. The plan may be amended at any other time if there are significant changes to any of the framework conditions and the majority of resource owners give their consent.

2.2. Mission and Vision

The mission is the sustainable management and development of the Drawa area forest resources by maintaining and enhancing the long-term health and productivity of the forest ecosystems, while providing ecological, economic, social and cultural opportunities for the benefit of present and future generations. It requires:

• Environmental sustainability – a healthy and productive ecosystem

• Social sustainability – active participation of landowners from the planning to the implementation stages, maximising the benefits from the forest without diminishing the services and products it provides

• Economic sustainability – benefits that exceed costs and economical viability of forest-based ventures today and in the future.

The vision of the resource owners and managers is the creation of the maximum value and economic return from the forest resource through community-based processing and value-adding facilities for poverty alleviation and the improvement of their livelihood. In the future, forest management and a various range of forest products may be certified by an internationally recognized certification system (e.g. FSC) and direct-exported independently.

2.3. Sustainable Forest Management Principles Adopted in the Drawa Model Area

A pre-harvest forest inventory of the model area was undertaken by the Forestry Department, with technical assistance from the SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry Project, in 1999 - 2000. Landowners were trained to carry out the field operations. The inventory encompassed all timber stands and trees of ecological and social value in the Production Forest areas. From this data, the total amount of timber was determined and a sustainable yield calculated (Annual Allowable Cut, AAC). A projection of sustainable supply envisions a ‘permanent’ timber estate, capable of a continuous cycle of harvests. A sustainable harvest model adopts a rotation of forests where logging areas (coupes) are harvested at predictable intervals, then reverting to periods of growth while adjacent areas provide the harvest on a continuous basis (polycyclic system). Also determined from the pre-harvest inventory data are recommended coupe-specific logging intensities.

The timber harvesting procedure in the area is a selective logging system with sustained-yield management of all the potentially merchantable timber species. The selection of trees for harvesting is based on tree species-specific diameter felling limit tables computed from several pre-harvest inventory data sets of Fiji, which proved applicable to the conditions in the Drawa Block. The diameter felling limits takes into consideration the stocking and regeneration rate of individual tree species. Only tree species above the felling limits with proven timber utilization potential are selected and harvested. As the species-specific cutting diameter limits recommend the removal of only a few big trees of marketable value, the structure of the forest, as well as its biological diversity, is maintained. As the standing stock in the production areas in Drawa consist of more than 80 % of commercial and potentially marketable timber species of good regeneration capacity, no considerable transformation of the natural forest composition (plantation establishment or enrichment planting) is necessary to sustain the economical viability of forest management. The logging operations are carried out according to the National Code of Logging Practice so that the negative impacts to the remaining stand and the environment is minimized. Other silvicultural measures are identified on site during coupe planning.

The Forestry Department established several permanent sample plots (PSPs) to monitor forest growth, and observations and results will be regularly incorporated into the further development of the management regime.

Environmentally sensitive sites such as steep slopes with a high risk of erosion, watercourses prone to pollution and sedimentation, habitats of rare or endangered plant and animal species, and cultural sensitive sites are designated as “Protection Forest” and will be excluded from timber production. The identification and protection of rare, threatened and endangered species was undertaken by ethno-botanists during the tree selection and coupe harvesting planning where fragile habitats with buffer zones were demarcated. Environmental safeguards also include a monitoring and evaluation system of ecosystem conditions prior to and after interventions to allow comparison, detect impacts, and determine possible improvements to forest management operations. Protection forest areas are left untouched and conserve fragile ecosystems, maintain biological diversity and a healthy environment. Since these sites are very susceptible to soil erosion, the management will be extensive, with the main purpose of stabilising soils, and water storage. Timber harvesting or other forest uses will be restricted to minor forest products or to manual or non-mechanised timber extraction. Such operations will have negligible effect on forest cover, stand composition, or hydrological conditions.

Participatory rural appraisals and surveys of the Drawa model area revealed that agricultural land use practices were adversely affecting the timber resource through the conversion of forest areas to yaqona and dalo gardens. It was obvious that a holistic land use plan was needed to ensure a continuous forest resource.

The Drawa model area land use plan adopts an integrated (inter-sectoral) and participatory approach. The resource owners of the Drawa model area actively participated in the planning process with relevant government stakeholders (Department of Land Resources Planning and Development, Agriculture Extension Unit and Forestry Department), Provincial administrators, and the Native Lands Trust Board facilitating. Neighbouring communities were included in the consultation process. The plan is for 10 years from 2005 to 2015,  to be reviewed in 2010 (or sooner, if socio-economic and environmental conditions demand it). These changes however, will be at activity level as it is imperative that the long-term goals of the plan are not compromised.

The overall goal of the Drawa land use plan is “to integrate the establishment and management of timber estates, agriculture areas, ecologically and culturally sensitive sites, and natural reserves with ecotourism potential into a sustainably managed ecosystem”.

The following specific objectives for the plan are representations of concerns and needs arising from participatory appraisals and surveys carried out in and outside the model area.

1. Ensure a continuous timber supply from the production forest areas for the benefit of present and future generations

2. Select agriculture sites and systems based on environmental, social and economical requirements

3. Clearly and formally delineate agriculture sites to better address land use needs and enable effective monitoring of land use activities

4. Determine income generating activities which has minimum detrimental impact on forest resources

5. Strengthen women in their role as primary household providers through crop diversification (at subsistence level)

6. Diversify into cash crops that are economically viable, environmentally suited, and contributes to general well-being

7. Identify market opportunities

8. Evaluate customary agriculture systems and existing husbandry and management practices for improvement towards soil conservation and land sustainability

9. Protect threatened and vulnerable plants, historical sites, and cultural artefacts

10. Establish a land use monitoring structure which actively involves the landowners

3.1. Protection of Timber Producing Areas

During the planning process the mataqali of the Drawa block agreed to contain their forest clearing activities to defined areas in order to protect the productivity of their forests. Based on technical information like land use capabilities, forest inventory data, soils, and on socio-economic assessments and botanical surveys, landowners identified suitable and sufficient land to be reserved for their future agricultural and non-forestry activities. In endorsing and signing the plan, the Drawa mataqali agree to curb the encroachment of yaqona and dalo plantations into the forest areas and confirm their commitment to adopt sustainable land use technologies and methods in marginal and vulnerable lands. The Forest Lease Agreement stipulates fines for encroachment into production and reserved forest areas, monitored by formally appointed community bodies

Production and marketing of non-timber forest products and agriculture produce shall be promoted with joint marketing efforts. Eco-tourism is identified to have a good potential, especially with the attractive natural and historical sites in the area. it could provide a source of income for the landowners without adversely affecting the forest areas. The Drawa Landowners Association will be drawing up a proposal with assistance from relevant agencies.

4. Community-Based Organisations

4.1. Drawa Landowners Forest Management Co-operative Limited (DraFCo)

In 2003, the Drawa mataqali agreed to the formation of a cooperative organisation to manage the model area forest resources. The landowners formed an organisation based along a co-operative structure and endorsed its legal regulations. On May 6^th, 2003, the Drawa Landowners Forest Management Co-operative Limited (DraFCo) was registered under the Co-operative Act, 1996. DraFCo’s internal regulations are documented in by-laws.

DraFCo is the forest management and major business body operating under the control of a Board of Directors (BoD). The BoD is the governing body elected by the landowners and consists of nine representatives from the Drawa mataqali. A supervisory committee, made up of three members, was elected as an external monitoring body in charge of assessing DraFCo’s performance, its development, accountability and reliability. They are responsible for reporting any severe breaches in logging practices to the BoD and to the Forest Beat Officer, and may recommend cessation of operations. As part of their monitoring role, they examine monthly reports submitted by the BoD and compare them with the respective annual working plan, budget plan, coupe and management plan

For the first three years (2003 - 2006) the overall coordination and supervision is supported by the SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry Project after which, the BoD and Supervisory Committee are expected to fully take over. The responsible forest station beat officers of the Forestry Department will monitor and endorse all forestry operations.

The DraFCo encourages communal participation, strengthens inter and intra mataqali cohesion and supports local economic development. Membership in the DraFCo is open to other mataqali adjacent to the Drawa Block subject to agreement on the stated regulations and forest resource contribution.

4.1.1. Development of the Drawa community-based enterprise

The need to bridge the gap between the production and income objectives of land users and society’s long-term objective of preserving natural resources is widely recognised. The challenge is to make local communities stakeholders of the forest, not simply users of its products. Experiences from around the world reveal that resource owners can be convinced to better manage their forest resources if they see some financial gain from the efforts in applying sustainable management.

Drawa has seen the development of a community-based cooperative and land owner association (ref. Chapter 4.2) to strengthen the active involvement of the resource owners in the management of their resources. Such involvement addresses the social and economic aspects of forest management and helps develop the local community.

The project’s mantra for community-based ventures has always been “start small”. Different business options that consider varying levels levels of community involvement and skills and were developed for the community-based enterprise. This helped identify a starting point for landowner business engagement that is within the landowners existing capabilities, and is socially acceptable to the larger community whilst at the same time economically beneficial. The enterprise developed from there, through various capacity building initiatives which include, inter alia, technical, business, micro-finance and administrative trainings.

The project had demonstrated that with appropriate training and with the support of relevant agencies (such as Forestry Department, NLTB, and industry) forest owners can ably participate in the management of their forests.

4.1.2. Portable sawmilling – a community-based business venture

A market survey and analysis on the economical viability of community-based mobile–sawmilling operations indicated a favourable economic climate . The local sawn timber market prices and demand for native timber are high and with a simple technology to produce such products, community mobile sawmill operations are lucrative, especially with many down-stream processing and value-adding opportunities (moulding, weather boards, furniture making, etc.). The small-scale production of sawn timber on site saves on cartage (logs) costs, which enables DraFCo to offer competitive prices. 

A mobile sawmill was bought for the DraFCo through a cost sharing arrangement with the SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry Project. In December last year (2005), landowners were trained at the Fiji Forestry Training Centre on operating the mobile sawmill. Further training on sawmilling and timber grading are currently ongoing.

Further studies regarding the  economic viability (whether community-based enterprises can sustain their business, and improve their household livelihoods, and still maintain the productivity of their forest resources) will be undertaken in the months to come.

 4.2. Landowners Association of Drawa (LOAD)

The Drawa landowners have also formed the Landowners Association of Drawa (LOAD), an association to safeguard their interest in the sustainable management and development of their forest and land resources. LOAD oversees DraFCo and controls the distribution of the logging revenue for community development funds, employment opportunities for mataqali members and general monitoring and evaluation of both timber (forest management pan) and non-timber (land use plan) activities in the Drawa model area.

The association has its own by-laws that document the rights and obligations of its members and the linkages between the DraFCo and LOAD. The LOAD by-laws together with the forest management plan is incorporated into the Forest Lease Agreement setting the platform for their legal recognition. The Forest Lease Agreement is between the forest management body (DraFCo) and NLTB signed by their representatives. It legally ensures the long-term forest resource security for DraFCo, and its sustainable use.

5. Involved Stakeholders

The current success of the Drawa project is attributed to the 11 mataqali of the Drawa model area who have remain united and resolute in their commitment to sustainably manage their forest resources for almost 10 years now. The mataqali have remained so in the face of enticing offers from commercial loggers. Also to be commended is the collaborative management displayed by stakeholders who work effectively together in the decision-making and implementation processes. These include the Forestry Department, the Native Land Trust Board, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Sugar and Land Resettlement (Department of Land Resources, Planning, and Development and the Extension Division), the Fijian Affairs Board, the Co-operatives Department, the Department of Environment, the Department of Regional Development, Fiji Forests Industries, and non-government agencies who assisted in the flora and fauna surveys of the area.

The Drawa model area project is supported through the SPC/GTZ Pacific–German Regional Forestry Project.

For more information contact:

The Team Leader / Chief Adviser

SPC/GTZ Pacific-German Regional Forestry Project

P.O. Box 14041

Suva

Tel: 3305983

Fax: 63315446 § Email: christophm@spc.int

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