TITLE:
Factors Influencing Community Participation in Forestry Management in Chiradzulu District, Malawi
AUTHORS:
Charles Chiwaya, Maureen Kapute Mzuza
KEYWORDS:
Age, Education, Land Size, Woodlands, Soil Erosion
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Forestry,
Vol.12 No.2,
March
25,
2022
ABSTRACT: Community participation in forestry management is a good approach to
protecting forests and woodlands. This study was carried out to assess factors
affecting community participation in forestry management in Chiradzulu District. The study employed a mixed-method approach
where qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Results showed
that there is an almost equal percentage of female and
male respondents who participated in forestry management. The Logit model analysis shows that education variables are
positive and statistically significant proving that education influences
participation in forestry management and hence education is an important
variable in determining households’
participation in forestry. Only the age
group of 45 - 59 years was significant but had a negative
coefficient with a moderate marginal effect at 59% (r = 0.59) implying that
many people in this age group participated in forestry
activities than other age groups. When the size
of household land ownership was used
as a proxy to indicate household wealth and then correlated with participation in forestry activities, a positive
and significant correlation between households that owned 1 - 2 acres and 3 - 5 acres
of land and their participation in forestry
activities was observed. It can be concluded that the size of land owned is one of the key factors that determine
households’ participation in forestry
management. Furthermore, a connection between land size distribution and
effects on environmental resources was evident.