GEF Project Status Report

(To be updated soon)

GEF Project on Conservation and sustainable management of Biodiversity:

SRISTI on behalf of Ministry of Environment and Forest has and submitted a PDF-B Proposal on Dry land Biodiversity Project in North Gujarat. The project brief detailing the major activities and budget has been submitted to GEF council, UNDP Washington for final approval after being endorsed by Ministry of Environment and Forests. The Forest Department of Government of Gujarat will shoulder the responsibility to implement the major project. The total project outlay amounts to USD 8,590,000 of which agreed incremental costs to be financed by the GEF amount to US$ 4,420,000 excluding preparatory assistance. Co-financing amounting to US$ 3,840,000 has been leveraged, reflecting the fact that the project will generate domestic in addition to global benefits

Project Development Phase:

Consulting people living in and around the sanctuary villages was a key activity of the project development process, during which consultation were held in two-third of villages in the project area.  Preparation for the project has emphasized multiple stakeholder ownership, local participation and public involvement (e.g., information dissemination, local consultations, etc.). Outputs of the consultations held at various locations have been key inputs into the project design and development. 

Thirteen major threats were identified based on various study reports and local consultations carried out in about two-thirds (seventy-five) of the villages within both the sanctuaries, which represent different ecological regions and sub-regions. Focus group discussions were held with (a) opinion leaders (seven to nine on an average per group) representing different local communities and (b) Range Forest officers, Foresters and Forest guards from all the eight ranges.  Local communities and the forest officials prioritized the threats depending upon their significance as perceived. 

SRISTI prepared the project with the assistance of professional institutes like ISRO, Gujarat Institute of Development Research, MS University of Baroda, Gujarat Agricultural University, NGOs, the Gujarat State Forest Department, and SRISTI network members. We pursued a Participatory Patient Learning Interaction (PPLI) approach, using indicative planning in an innovative way based on sample views of local people about biodiversity issues.  More than 500 persons including policy makers, scientists, officials, innovators, herbalists, and farmers have participated in various consultations and workshops organized under the project.

The suggestions of the local communities have been sought during the village survey of 72 villages carried out earlier as part of the indigenous knowledge study. Local NGOS working in and around sanctuary areas were also involved.  A separate session was held with the NGOs to gain their assistance in consulting people in their respective project areas.  Small consultations covering five to ten villages at a time were held and then all stakeholders were invited to a large consultation exercise.

Project strategy: Targeting on threats:

The project sites were the Jessore Sloth Bear and Balaram-Ambaji Wildlife sanctuaries of north Gujarat, which have unique assemblages of endemic and endangered fauna and flora, wild native crop varieties and endemic medicinal plants. The two sanctuaries include these unique forest ecosystems, and contain at least 16 rare or endangered flora species However, these sanctuaries face threats from several anthropogenic factors particularly the sanctuaries’ inhabitants that depend on the biodiversity resources of the area, especially for non-timber biodiversity products (NTBPs), grazing and fuel wood needs.

Several threats have been identified during project preparatory process through local consultative workshops with communities and forest officials managing the sanctuaries. The most important threats are overgrazing, over harvesting of fuel wood, medicinal plants, wild-relatives of domestic crops and other non-timber biodiversity products (such as gum and honey), Encroachment and clearing of land, quarrying and mining activitie and soil and water degradation.   Replacements of endemic species like Dendrocalamus strictus and Plumbago zeylanica with exotic invasive species like Prosopis juliflora, Lantana camara and Parthenium hysterophorus has occurred locally.  Of the invasive species Prosopis juliflora (which was deliberately introduced by forest managers in the past) is the most prevalent.

The goal of this project is to conserve globally significant biodiversity within the two project sanctuaries while at the same time improving the standard of living of local people.  This will occur through knowledge intensive biodiversity-friendly activities so that local stakeholders’ intensity of forest resource use is reduced, while the value-added incomes and livelihood benefits derived from the resources are increased.  The project will improve the protection of the wildlife to the extent that they are not threatened from human-induced activities, as well as removing barriers and demonstrating the sustainable use of medicinal plants, wild relatives of traditional crop varieties and other non-timber biodiversity resources

The project strategy is built on four objectives. 

i.                     To [S1] conserve and augment critically endangered flora and fauna in the sanctuaries

ii.                   To reduce resource pressures on the sanctuaries by developing sustainable alternative livelihood activities

iii.                  To improve the institutional and technical capacities of the sanctuary managers (the Forest Department) for biodiversity conservation and

iv.                 To identify and initiate processes of change in order to overcome policy and institutional barriers hindering the sustainable management and conservation of the sanctuaries. 

The project features several innovative approaches to biodiversity conservation, including promoting indigenous knowledge and grassroots solutions for developing alternative livelihoods, and identifying and promoting native conservation ethics (Sacred Groves, Knowledge Forests, etc.) as the foundation for conservation awareness efforts.

The project has high replicable value, due to the fact that most local communities are inter-dependent on local biological resources, and have developed indigenous knowledge of their use and management in ecologically sustainable ways.

Project Strategy:

The project has been developed based upon certain key strategies.  Amongst the most important is the focus on reducing human pressure on core-protected areas of the sanctuaries, by developing alternative livelihood resources in surrounding areas.  By developing alternative livelihood resources in these buffer areas, the project will reduce the demand for resources from within the sanctuaries, while simultaneously helping to improve the standard of living (and sustainable livelihoods) of local communities.  One alternative livelihood option to be pursued is the development of suitable grazing lands for local and nomadic livestock herders.  This will directly address the threat posed by livestock encroachment, through a participatory approach, including the negotiation and enforcement of user agreements. 

Another alternative livelihood resource to be developed is value-enhancement of non-timber biodiversity products such as gums, resins and traditional medicines and agro-chemical substitutes.  By removing product processing and marketing barriers, the project will help local communities to earn much higher revenues from NTBP activities, without increasing the quantity of NTBPs being harvested.

Unique features:

FIRST THREE PARAGRAPHS FROM HB VOL 11(2), APRIL-JUNE, 2000 PAGE  14)

One of the unique features of the project is the strategic emphasis on documenting, promoting and supporting indigenous knowledge systems and traditional conservation ethics.  Many of the alternative livelihood activities being developed are based upon traditional local remedies and grassroots solutions to agricultural and rural problems.  Traditional medical remedies and herbal pesticides and herbicides are being promoted as a means of enhancing revenues generated from local NTBPs.  Traditional conservation practices, including the maintenance of Sacred Groves around religious sites, are being promoted as the basis for protecting core zones and in developing awareness of the benefits of biodiversity conservation.  Linking the objectives and activities of the project to existing socio-cultural traditions and ancestral knowledge will build a stronger base of community support and buy-in, thereby improving the prospects for success and long-term sustainability.

The expectations from the project:

At the end of this project, the following changes are expected:

1.      Critically endangered wildlife, medicinal plant species and wild native crop varieties will be protected in sanctuary core areas.

2.      An information and monitoring programme will be developed and implemented as a management tool for coordinating and planning biodiversity conservation activities.

3.      Alternative livelihood resources (fuel, fodder, food and income-generating resources) will be developed in the sanctuary non-core protected and buffer areas.

4.      A sustainable livestock management system will be developed and implemented.

5.      Best practices for the collection and conservation of wild medicinal plant and agro-biodiversity will be introduced, and collection regulated to sustainable levels.

6.      Indigenous knowledge of local biodiversity (particularly alternative agricultural practices and resources) will be documented and promoted as intellectual property.

7.      A public awareness and environmental education campaign focusing on indigenous conservation ethics and knowledge systems will be developed and implemented.

8.      Sanctuary monitoring, management and enforcement resources will be assessed and strengthened.

9.      Comprehensive sanctuary management plans will be developed and implemented.

10.  Technical capacities for sustainable management and conservation of the sanctuaries will be upgraded through the assessment of training needs and the development and implementation of training plans

11.  Local community consultation and involvement strategies will be developed and implemented to strengthen popular participation in sanctuary management.

12.  State and Central Government policy and legislative barriers will be identified and addressed

13.  The land rights settlement process will be completed, and accurate sanctuary boundaries demarcated and enforced with community support.

14.  An effective inter-sectoral coordination mechanism will be developed and implemented to ensure that all relevant Government and institutional stakeholders are working together to conserve and sustainably manage the sanctuaries.

15.  Land and water resource management will be undertaken on a comprehensive, inter-sectoral, catchment-wide basis through the development and implementation of an effective watershed management plan.

This project is designed to support the primary objectives of the CBD (Conservation of Biological Diversity), the sustainable-use of its components, and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of these components. 

Implementation arrangements:

The Forest Department, Government of Gujarat, will be responsible for the execution of the major project, and the achievement of its objectives.

The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) will appoint a National Project Director (NPD) in consultation with the Gujarat State Forest Department.  The NPD will help MoEF in constituting the Steering Committee (in consultation with UNDP) for efficient implementation of the project.  The Steering Committee will comprise representatives of the MoEF, cross-sectoral Ministries including the Department of Economic Affairs, State Government nodal agencies, NGOs, prominent experts, SRISTI, IIMA, representatives of local stakeholders, and UNDP. 

·        The PMC will be set up to carry out the day-to-day work of the project.  The project team comprising technical and support staff will assist the PMC, headed by a Project Manager.  The PMCs will assume the responsibility for overall co-ordination and management of activities, administration, and finances.  A Project Advisory Committee will be constituted by the NPD to support the execution of the project at the Banaskantha District level.  The Advisory Committee will have representatives from the District Administration, relevant departments and nodal agencies, lead bank, financial institutions, NGOs, prominent experts, and community representatives. TheProject Manager will act as member-secretary of the Project Advisory Committee.  The Project Advisory Committee will appoint its own Chairperson to conduct its meetings. 

·        Budget:

16.  The total budget for the project is summarised below:

Various studies:

(FROM HB VOL 11(2), APRIL-JUNE, 2000 PAGE  14-16, FINDINGS)

 Insect Biodiversity: 

A study on insect diversity was conducted by Dr. A.K. Ghosh , Ex-Drector, Zoological Survey of India and his associates at Center for Environmnet and Development, Calcutta. 

Out of 27 sampling sites that have been covered from an area of 700 sq.km a total of 181 species have been recorded. Out of 15 orders of Indian Thar Desert and 18 Orders in Gujarat State, these two new sanctuaries shared 60 and 50 percents of the total fauna respectively. In several orders new species have been recorded. Particularly, the order Mecoptera is the new record from Indian Thar Desert. Almost 30 per cent of Indian Thar Desert Fauna are present in project sites, which indicates good entomofaunal diversity.

Presence of predators like Asilidae(Diptera), Reduviidae, Miridae(hemiptera)  and most of the Odonata indicates the pest population of this area is well mainmtained. Five species from Colepotrea, Diptera and Orthoptera groups have been reported endemic to the area.