Forestland Concession, Land Rights, and Livelihood Changes of Ethnic Minorities: The Case of the Madhupur Sal Forest, Bangladesh

Abstract

Forestland concession has been the dominant governance tool for the acquisition of natural state-owned forest resources in many tropical countries, including Bangladesh. Moreover, the forestland concession process confers the holder a bundle of rights. The Sal forests of Bangladesh are treated as some of the greatest concession forests, as a number of ethnic minorities use these forests for their daily living. Therefore, the objectives of the study were to assess the impacts of Sal forestland concession and land rights on the livelihood development of the ethnic minorities living in the Madhupur Sal Forest (MSF) area of Bangladesh. Using both qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques, the study found out that about two thirds of the original Sal forestland was grabbed by the state and non-state actors. As a result, the ethnic minority inhabitants have lost their traditional land and free access rights to the Sal forests. The process of losing ethnic minorities’ land and forest access rights has been enhanced by the institutional arrangements of the state, which had also created severe conflicts between the Forest Department and the ethnic communities. The study also revealed that the forestland concession has negatively affected the five livelihood capitals development of the ethnic minorities, consequently, their forest-based livelihood has shifted to non-securing jobs or poor income sources, like daily wage labor and subsistence agriculture. Despite this, the development drivers have emphasized the Sal forests and biodiversity conservation, while the livelihood development of the ethnic minorities has been ignored from every level. Therefore, this study would recommend establishing a legitimate process in order to settle the issue of traditional land and the forest rights of ethnic minorities, which could also attain the conservation and development goals of the Sal forests.

Decolonising Conservation Policy: How Colonial Land and Conservation Ideologies Persist and Perpetuate Indigenous Injustices at the Expense of the Environment

“…Instead, postcolonial States have often continued the land use and conservation policies of the coloniser, to the great detriment of indigenous peoples [81]. In some contexts, indigenous land rights have been further marginalised under postcolonial governments [82]. This is not meant to diminish the brutal impact of colonial rule on indigenous peoples; rather it demonstrates how colonial norms and knowledge systems have been institutionalised in colonised territories, at the expense of the most marginalised and consistently exploited groups [83].…”

Rethinking resilient agriculture: From Climate-Smart Agriculture to Vulnerable-Smart Agriculture

“…The insecurity of households relies on the existence of properties over which a household has complete access. Assets buffer danger, boost recovery, and produce unequal results for households in a group depending on the degree of ownership (Islam and Hyakumura, 2019). Poorer areas of society are more likely to slip into poverty pits because of frequent incidents of climate stress that restrict their ability to preserve livelihoods, rendering them the worst victims of climate change (Etzold and Mallick, 2016).…”

Does Traditional Agroforestry a Sustainable Production System in Bangladesh? An Analysis of Socioeconomic and Ecological Perspectives

“…Conceptual frameworks: The agroforestry production systems provide a range of economic, environmental and social benefits to present and future world and conserve natural resources effectively [6]. Therefore, the outcomes of the traditional agroforestry production system are directly linked with management of a system which is simultaneously economically viable, socially responsible and environmentally sound [16][17][18][19]. In order to understand whether the traditional agroforestry systems are sustainable, the study gathered ideas from the triangular sustainable model of economic, social and ecological dimensions developed by the [20].…”