THE THEORY OF CO-MANAGEMENT AND ITS APPLICATION IN SOUTH AFRICA’S PFM POLICY
6.3. THE POLICY CONTEXT PERTAINING TO PFM
6.3.2. Forestry-related policy and legislative documents
This section discusses six key policy or legislative documents that pertain to the forestry sector. The White Paper is the first document that is discussed because it sets out the guiding principles for DWAF, and creates the foundation for the development of a number of policies
and programmes to bring forestry in South Africa in line with the ANC’s social, political and economic goals. These policies and programmes include the National Forestry Action Programme (September, 1997), National Forests Act (Act 84 of 1998), the Framework for the PFM Programme (July, 1999); the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Strategy (November, 2000); the Principles, Criteria, Indicators and Standards for Sustainable Forest Management of natural forests and plantations in South Africa (2002) and the Draft PFM Policy (May 2003). Each are discussed in relation to their role in promoting PFM.
White Paper on Sustainable Forest Development in South Africa (March, 1996)
The White Paper on Sustainable Forest Development in South Africa is South Africa’s forest policy. It expresses the state’s goal concerning forestry to “promote a thriving forest sector, to be utilised for the lasting benefit of the nation, and developed and managed to protect the environment” (DWAF, 1996:4). The introduction of the RDP policy in South Africa necessitated changes to the way in which forest management was undertaken and to incorporate the goals of the RDP (DWAF, 1996). The paper is in keeping with the RDP approach as opposed to the GEAR strategy because it promotes state intervention in addressing rural development and facilitating local economic development initiatives.
This document indicates the forestry department’s commitment to the principles enshrined in the South African Constitution and sets out the principles that will guide DWAF in the manner in which it will engage with people and in which it will formulate and implement policy. These guiding principles are that:
a. Forests and forest resources are to be treated as a national asset
b. Policy is to be formulated and implemented so as to promote democratisation c. There should be gender equity
d. Forestry should promote people-driven development
e. Forestry should promote consultation in formulating and implementing policy f. Forest development should be sustainable
g. There should be recognition of the scarcity of water resources h. Forestry should be a competitive and value-adding sector i. Provide decent employment conditions (DWAF, 1996).
The White Paper provides the opportunity for a co-management approach such as PFM to be adopted by DWAF. The document stipulates that policies and plans for forestry will be developed and implemented using a more inclusive and participatory approach and “will be developed to facilitate the role of people in communities, the private sector, and Government”
(DWAF, 1996:21). The document contains a separate policy for community forestry out of
which the PFM policy has emerged. Section 2.6 of the White Paper details the policy for community forestry, and Section 2.7 the policy for the conservation of natural forests and woodlands.
Community forestry is endorsed by the national state and a policy is provided. This is a form of forestry that is “designed and applied to meet local social, household, and environmental needs and to favour local economic development” and “is implemented by communities or with the participation of communities” (DWAF, 1996:10). An important detail in the community forestry policy is the proposal that the role of national government should change from that of ‘management’ and rather play a coordinating and enabling role in the promotion of SFM at all levels of governance (Willis, 2004). The PFM policy, as described in Chapter Five, arose out of the community forestry policy in the White Paper and indicates the state’s intention to alter the manner in which it engages with people and the manner in which it formulates and implements policy.
National Forestry Action Programme (September, 1997)
The government undertook to review the policies and legislation governing forests, and by 1997 the review culminated in the National Forestry Action Programme, which was subsequently translated into the National Forest Act (Act 84 of 1998).
South Africa’s National Forestry Action Programme (NFAP) (September, 1997) is regarded as the most appropriate planning process for sustainable forest development and the implementation of Agenda 21. Agenda 21 is a United Nation (UN) programme that is aimed at promoting sustainable development. It is a comprehensive blueprint of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organisations of the UN, governments, and major groups in every area in which humans impact on the environment. The number 21 refers to the 21st century (UNCED, 1992).
The NFAP is a strategic plan that provides a framework for implementing forestry policy (Willis, 2004). Forests of all kinds fall under the NFAP, and community forestry is promoted as an important component of the plan for any forest to counter natural woodland and forest degradation by those who rely on fuel wood as an energy source. The concept of participatory forest management is included in this programme as a strategy for both communal and state forests.
Framework for the PFM Programme (July, 1999)
The Framework for the PFM Programme in the Directorate: Indigenous Forest Management (July, 1999) is a document which is analysed in Chapter Eight. It describes PFM and why this approach is necessary in South Africa. It also provides the mission statement of the Directorate, which is (DWAF, 1999:3):
“To manage, on a sustainable basis, the state indigenous forests with the objective of conserving biodiversity and contributing to the economic, social and spiritual upliftment of South Africa’s people, with special emphasis on poor rural communities”
The document also provides the PFM policy statement, and the eleven principles which the Chief Directorate: Forestry has adopted to guide its approach and practices for the management of state indigenous forests (DWAF, 1999).
National Forests Act (Act 84 of 1998)
The National Forests Act (Act 84 of 1998) is expected to provide the legislative support necessary for the implementation of the forest policy as encapsulated in the 1996 White Paper on Sustainable Forest Development in South Africa (Willis, 2004).
The Act makes provision for the promotion of PFM in South Africa, even though it does not use the phrase specifically. Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) is the key premise of the Act and the stated principles are as follows: (a) natural forests must not be destroyed save in exceptional circumstances where, in the opinion of the Minister, a proposed new land use is preferable in terms of its economic, social or environmental benefits; (b) a minimum area of each woodland type should be conserved; and (c) forests must be developed and managed so as to:
1. Conserve biological diversity, ecosystems and habitats
2. Sustain the potential yield of their economic, social and environmental benefits 3. Promote the fair distribution of their economic, social, health and environmental
benefits
4. Promote their health and vitality
5. Conserve natural resources, especially soil and water
6. Conserve heritage resources and promote aesthetic, cultural and spiritual values 7. Advance persons or categories of persons disadvantaged by unfair discrimination.
This Act also makes legislative provision for the development of criteria and indicators of sustainability of forest resources. According to Shackleton and Willis (2000:25) the Act
“automatically protects all natural forests and places the responsibility for the implementation of the Act with national government”. The government, however, reserves the right to delegate or assign this responsibility to other management agents (Shackleton and Willis, 2000; Kühn et al., 2002; DWAF, 2003a). Provision is made for community involvement in Chapter Four of the Act through the establishment of Community Forestry Agreements (CFA’s) and the development of criteria and indicators for Sustainable Forest Management is prescribed.
The Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Strategy (November, 2000)
The aim of the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Strategy (ISRDS) is to implement integrated rural development programmes across the country that will “attain socially cohesive and stable rural communities with viable institutions, sustainable economies and universal access to social amenities, able to attract and retain skilled and knowledgeable people who are equipped to contribute to growth and development” (ISRDS, 2000:iv). It is reported to be
“idealistic in its vision and practical in its focus on mechanisms of implementation” (ISRDS, 2000:iv). This government strategy arose out of its experience with rural programmes since 1994, and lessons learned from similar endeavours worldwide.
This strategy forms part of the government’s concerted attempt to achieve their development goals, and thereby address the injustices created by past apartheid policies, in a more integrated way. The strategy encourages a participatory approach because addressing issues of rural poverty and underdevelopment is premised on co-operation between the three tiers of government, with the full participation of rural communities and in partnership with all people.
Through this programme it is anticipated that rural communities will achieve higher levels of development, receive improved service delivery and experience a deepening of democracy (ISRDS, 2000).
According to DWAF (2003a), use of forests by communities is only part of their livelihood and therefore PFM should be included as part of the Integrated Development Plan.
Principles, Criteria, Indicators and Standards for Sustainable Forest Management of natural forests and plantations in South Africa (2002)
The Principles, Criteria, Indicators and Standards (PCI&S) in this 2002 document are intended as tools to be used for promoting, monitoring and regulating sustainable forest management in South Africa in accordance with the principles laid out in the NFA. They were developed
through intensive stakeholder consultation and at the time of this research were being tested by DWAF and the Committee for Sustainable Forest Management (CSFM).
According to DWAF (2003a), 22 of the 80 indicators have particular reference to PFM, local development and stakeholder participation, and PFM principles fall within ten of the twenty- four criteria.
Draft PFM Policy (May 2003).
This draft document was revised in October 2003, but it is the May 2003 version that has been used here in the analysis because the analysis was already underway when the updated document became available. The draft policy document, which follows from the 1999 Framework document, is “an overview and a synthesis of existing PFM policy in South Africa” with the stated purpose being to “stimulate further development of PFM under the existing mandate and revised organisational structure of DWAF” (DWAF, 2003:2).
For the purpose of analysis, only the White Paper of Sustainable Forest Development in South Africa (DWAF, 1996); the National Forests Act (DWAF, 1998); the Framework for the PFM Programme of the Directorate: Indigenous Forest Management (DWAF, 1999) and the Draft PFM Policy (DWAF, 2003) were selected for analysis in this research, the results of which are discussed in Chapter Eight. These four documents were selected on the basis that PFM forms a key component of the documents and they therefore provide the official state rhetoric for PFM and an indication of the way in which the concept of participatory forest management is being conceptualised at a national level.