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COMMUNITY BASED HAOR RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Sustainable Environment Management Programme (SEMP)

Implementing Partner: Center for Natural Resource Studies (CNRS)
Project Period: October 1998- December 2005
Funded by: MoEF and UNDP

INTRODUCTION
Haors (bowl shaped depressions between the levees of rivers) of Bangladesh are rich in biodiversity, having great ecological, economic and commercial values. Some of the haors are nationally and internationally important for their rich fauna and flora resources, including migratory birds of global and regional significance. Tanguar haor, a Ramsar site, is one of the most important mother fisheries and potential wetland for migratory and local birds along with other aquatic wildlife. The haors of Bangladesh are under various threats due to population pressure and indiscriminate resource use, which have labeled them as ‘degraded deplorably’. The main causes of wetland degradation are over-harvesting, siltation, conversion of wetlands into rice fields, unwise felling of aquatic trees, erection of embankment and other anthropogenic interventions. Fish and aquatic resources are also under threat due to indiscriminate catching and loss of breeding grounds.

The Community Based Haor Resource Management Project is being implemented by IUCN Bangladesh, in two well-defined degraded haors in the north-eastern region of Bangladesh, with support from the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) and the UNDP. The major focus of the programme is to involve the community people in planning and implementation of the project activities for the management of natural resources with a view to restoring and maintaining biodiversity as well as human well being in a sustainable manner.

OBJECTIVES
The broad objective of the project is management of degraded haor ecosystem through initiating sustainable management and wise use of the natural resources. The specific objectives of participatory ecosystem management are:

  1. Preventing and reversing the trends of haor degradation in selected areas
  2. Sustainable use of haor resources
  3. Promoting sustainable development of communities through natural resource management and livelihood enhancement
  4. Ensuring people's participation in the formulation and implementation of sustainable management plans
  5. Improving the quality of life lived by the locals with special focus on women and the inhabitants’ capacity building for haor ecosystem management.

PROJECT SITES
Initially, Pagnar and Sanuar-Dakuar haors of Jamalganj Upazilla under Sunamganj district had been selected as the two degraded sites of haor ecosystem, wherein the project interventions would be implemented. Back in 1998, IUCN Bangladesh along with its partner CNRS were able to launch the project therein, establish baseline database and formulate the action plan quite successfully. Based on the successful initiation and implementation of Community Based Haor Resource Management project in the said haor ecosystem, UNDP and the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) provided extra funds in October 2000 to extend the project in one more site in Hakaluki haor under Moulvibazar and Sylhet districts.

APPROACH
An approach based on community participation has been deployed while implementing the project. The natural resource management options and strategies are largely based on the biophysical and socio-economic conditions of specific sites. Participatory action plans have been developed, involving the representatives from all occupational and stakeholder groups of the community as well as the concerned government officials of respective upazillas. For implementation of the programme activities, village level resource management committees have been formed according to the guidelines formulated by the stakeholders. The community groups have been kept as broad-based as possible to achieve the necessary consensus building around all critical issues among the stakeholders resident there. Also, the gender related issues have been actively considered while planning and implementation of the project are on.

ACTIVITIES

  1. Bio-physical and socio-economic characterization of the project areas;
  2. Documentation of existing resource system and using pattern;
  3. Designed participatory action plan involving multi-stakeholders, representatives of Union Parishad and concerned government officials at Upazilla level;
  4. Organized some 222 training sessions among members of Village Environment Committees (VECs) and Villages Women/Men Groups to develop capacity to assess, plan and implement natural resource management; Established a total of 4 Wetland Management and Training Centres (WMTC) to localize and institutionalize the training efforts on haor ecosystem conservation;
  5. Planted more than 400,000 aquatic species for greening over 400 acres of degraded swamp forests of Haors; About 40km roadside and stream side restored with native species for conservation and habitat rehabilitation;
  6. About 600 acres of Hakaluki haor protected for promoting natural succession of aquatic flora and fauna;
  7. Organized more than 250 awareness programmes for school students, fishermen, women and general community people with a view to sharing natural resource related concerns of haor ecosystem ;
  8. Established pilot demonstrations on local vegetable gardening, ex-situ conservation of medicinal plants and aquatic plant nursery for livelihood security as well as threatened flora and fauna restoration;
  9. A demonstration of solar system for lighting 154 households of Binnyajura village of Pagnar haor established with partial contribution of villagers;
  10. Assessed extent of damage by wave erosion; prepared action plan and demonstrated erosion-proofing measures with geo-textile and bamboo-water hyacinth in 5 villages of haor;;
  11. Formed 64 women groups to promote alternative employment options in the haor areas that may reduce pressure on the ecosystems; Based on need assessment, environment fund has been disbursed among the members of the groups;
  12. A total of 40 Village Environment Committees (VECs) formed for strengthening local institutionalization process in haor with participation of multi stakeholders of the community;
  13. Collection of post-intervention data on biophysical and socio-economic characteristics of the project areas for comparative analysis and subsequent preparation of reports and publication under project scope.
IMPACT

  1. Haor people have been sensitized towards sustainable natural resource management.
  2. Enhanced abundance and species diversity of fish in the beels, canals and fish sanctuaries of project area.
  3. Fish migration routes as well as dry season refuge for fish and other aquatic livings re-established.
  4. Installation of solar panel in a remote haor village supplies off-grid electricity to all village households.
  5. Vulnerable women groups have been provided with environment funds as grants which has generated earnings for them under alternative employment options.
For further information, please contact:
Country Representative
IUCN – The World Conservation Union
Bangladesh Country Office House # 11, Road # 138
Gulshan – 1, Dhaka – 1212,Bangladesh
Tel: 880-2- 9890395, 9890423
Fax: 880 –2 - 9892854
E- mail: nishat@iucnbd.org
Web: www.iucnbd.org