Task Force on Economic Benefits of Protected Areas of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) in collaboration with the IUCN Economic Services Unit, 1998, xii + 52pp. Financing of Protected Areas Task Force of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) in collaboration with the IUCN Economics Unit, 2000, viii + 58pp.
About the authors
Introduction
It is recognized, however, that the management responsibility for an increasing number of protected areas rests with other types of organisations. Regardless of the type of management agency in place, the guidelines offered here are intended to apply to all protected areas.
Definitions and background
- Protected areas IUCN defines a protected area as
- Management planning
- Budget
- Time requirements
- Management by objectives
- Management Plan
- Other plans associated with the Management Plan
- Why plan?
- Legislative, statutory or other requirements
- The benefits of management planning
- Implementation of national or regional policies and corporate strategies
The primary product of management planning should be more effective management of the protected area. The Management Plan should provide the manager with a long-term vision for the protected area, as well as guidance on how to direct the management of the protected area towards this vision.
Requirements for successful
Introduction – what works
The process used in plan preparation
By doing this, the degree of local ownership of the process and the product can be significantly increased. Ensure strong public commitment to the importance of management plans by senior staff, board members, local authorities, ministry officials, etc.
The presentation, style and content of the Management Plan The presentation, style and content of the completed Management Plan can have a great
Detail and complexity will naturally evolve as the plan is regularly updated and as increased support becomes available” (MacKinnon et al., 1986). If authors find that the 'management focus' is diluted by a requirement that the plan perform other interpretive or public relations functions, or if the desire to keep it concise means that it will not effectively fulfill these other functions, then these requirements will must be addressed in a different way.
The context within which the plan must operate Regional integration
Therefore, management plans must be integrated or at least linked to local development processes and the activities of other agencies and organizations working in the area. Management plans should preferably be prepared within the context of a national systems plan for protected areas (see Davey, 1998).
Resources, commitment and capacity Identification of resources required
If no system plan has been developed, management plans should be linked to other relevant plans (eg local government plans, development plans) and legislation. This framework should be specific enough to guide and set boundaries in different aspects of protected area management. A detailed financial analysis of the plan's impacts and the resources needed to implement it should be prepared and included in an accompanying business plan.
On the other hand, they need to be aware of such issues to ensure that the plan is realistic and well focused.
Problems encountered in planning and implementation The problems encountered in management planning tend to be of two kinds
It is particularly important that contributors from the social and natural sciences work closely with each other and with the protected area managers themselves, both in the preparation and implementation of the plan. Finally, if the relevant managers have not been responsible for the preparation of a Management Plan, or at least fully involved in its preparation, it is likely that they will feel very little "ownership" of the final document and thus be less inclined towards its implementation. This will be particularly true if there is a lack of accountability within the organization and if there are few internal systems for monitoring and reporting on work done.
Abbreviated forms of planning
The management planning process
- Overview of the process
- Preparing a Management Plan Step 1. Pre-planning phase
The pre-planning phase is one of the most important steps in the planning process. Clearly identify the purpose and objectives of the management of the protected area – and ensure that they are understood by all involved. Management planning should be a "team effort," but within that, one person should be given responsibility for developing the plan.
Clarify and agree a procedure with senior management for the approval of the final Management Plan.
Data collection, background research and initial fieldwork
In such cases it is essential to agree a 'brief' between the contractor and the organization responsible for the management of the protected area before planning work begins. The type of information included will of course vary from protected area to protected area and depend on the characteristics of the area itself. Once highlighted, the need to obtain additional information (or correctly collate what already exists) may become an objective of the first plan for a protected area.
The descriptive information in the plan must be relevant to the management of the protected area.
Evaluating the information
Before the specific management objectives for the protected area are defined, the constraints on its management must be identified, as well as any major threats to the area's values. Often they will manifest themselves in the form of social or economic demands on the protected area. Since planning is about the future, the factors that may affect the future of the protected area must be identified and evaluated.
Many practitioners include this information in the description, while others have a specific "analysis" section of the plan for this purpose.
Developing management vision and objectives A long-term vision
Describing and prioritizing management objectives can be an important part of the planning and consultation processes. Managers' accountability to stakeholders should be measured by the timeliness of actions taken to implement the plan. The objectives should not repeat the objectives of the protected area, but should set out key aspects that will achieve this objective.
During the decision-making process and in the draft and final plan, the reasons for choosing the objectives should be explained.
Identifying and evaluating options including zoning
Areas identify where different strategies for management and use will best meet management objectives to achieve the desired future of the protected area. Limited development will be allowed in this area, but it must not be detrimental to the special or unique values of the park. Criteria for zoning should then be adopted, based on the objectives for the area and within the scope of the options developed.
Areas are defined based on the best available information and the expert judgment of an interdisciplinary planning team.
Integration into a draft plan
These are specific statements that describe what management needs to accomplish within the time frame of the plan. Objective justification is often included and provides valuable justification for decisions made during the planning process. This is particularly true of the part of the plan that deals with policies, objectives, zones and management measures.
It will include indicators on the basis of which the performance of the protected area will be measured.
Public consultation, including public exhibition of the draft plan The opportunity for the general public and stakeholders to review the draft Management
As the draft plan takes shape, it is helpful to circulate the text internally within the managing agency for comment. Public consultation, including public exhibition of the draft plan The opportunity for the general public and stakeholders to review the draft management. Additional time is regularly requested by community groups and non-governmental organizations to review and comment on the draft.
It is crucial that the draft management plan should be considered in its entirety, so that the final document will be appropriate Guidelines for management planning for protected areas.
Revision of draft and production of final plan
Box 16 suggests guidance on how this consultation process should be carried out: it is adopted by the guidelines for Category V protected areas, but the advice is relevant for other categories of protected areas.
Approval of plan
Implementation of the Management Plan
During the 5-10 year period of the management plan, it is also possible that major adjustments may be needed due to changes in the protected area itself, to the surrounding area or the staffing/financial situation of the managing organization. , or as a result of significant successes or failures. The second approach is adopted when countries or agencies decide to outline details of the financial and operational information as part of the management plan. When the second approach is adopted and this information is included, it will be in the form of a work plan which will cover the activities to be carried out with an estimate of costs over the entire management plan period.
These should be linked to annual budgets and provide an accurate projection of the work to be carried out in a protected area each year derived from the Management Plan.
Monitoring and review The purpose of monitoring and review
Within this broad section, IUCN identifies six main elements of the management process that can be evaluated to identify the level and location of success or failure within the management cycle:. For example, an annual report from the manager indicating activities carried out for the year will enable an evaluation of how much of the planned program has been completed. It therefore offers little understanding of the outputs of management and even less of its outcomes: it is not an informative approach.
However, accountability and assessment of the effectiveness of management are also difficult to achieve without the presence of specific and measurable objectives within the Management Plan itself, as already mentioned above.
Decision to review and update the Management Plan
- Involving people
- Why involve people
- Whom to involve
- Types of involvement
- Consultation
- Methods
- Towards community based planning
- The international dimension to management planning
- The management of World Heritage sites 1
- Ramsar Sites 2
- Evaluation and objectives (i.e. what to do) 1 Evaluation
- UNESCO Biosphere Reserves
- Protected areas subject to international or regional agreements Protected areas proclaimed within a national system may also be subject to international
- Transboundary arrangements
- Abbreviated planning approaches
But the inclusion of different interests is essential if there is to be consensus about the aims of the Management Plan. What is the current impact of their activities on the values of the protected area. This survey identified the need for more and better information on the objectives of the Management Plan.
Much attention should be paid to the development of management planning approaches, designed according to the capacity of the World Heritage property and its.
Annex: Roles, responsibilities and skills
Alternatively, the protected area manager can act as the author of the plan, with the help of the planner. The planner's role within the team is primarily that of coordinator, communicator and facilitator. The planner must be aware of this responsibility and have integrity and objectivity when compiling and presenting information to the rest of the team.
The ability to communicate in writing is the most important skill the writer or editor of the plan must possess.
Management of Protected Areas in Africa: report from a workshop on management of protected areas in Africa, Mweka, Tanzania. Management Plans for Natural Protected Areas in Mexico: Case Study of La Sierra de la Laguna.
World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA)
Guidelines for Management Planning
Lee Thomas and Julie Middleton Adrian Phillips, Series Editor
