Brent M. Swallow

The effects of scales, flows and filters on property rights and collective action in watershed management

Research and policy on property rights, collective action and watershed management requires good understanding of ecological and socio-political processes at different social-spatial scales. On-farm soil erosion is a plot or farm-level problem that can be mitigated through more secure property rights for individual farmers, while the sedimentation of streams and deterioration of water quality are larger-scale problems that may require more effective collective action and / or more secure property rights at the village or catchment scale. Differences in social-political contexts across nations and regions also shape property rights and collective action institutions. For example, circumstances in the Lake Victoria basin in East Africa require particular attention to collective action and property rights problems in specific “hot spot” areas where insecure tenure leads to overuse or under-investment. Circumstances in the uplands of Southeast Asia require analysis of the opportunities for negotiating more secure rights for farmers in exchange for stronger collective action by farmer groups for maintaining essential watershed functions.

Compensation and rewards for environmental services in the developing world: framing pan-tropical analysis and comparison.

This is the first of a series of papers that review the state of knowledge and practice regarding compensation and rewards for environmental services in the developing world. The paper begins with an assessment of the historical development of compensation and reward mechanisms within a broader context of changing approaches to nature conservation and environmental policy. The assessment shows that greater interest in compensation and reward mechanisms has emerged within a policy context of changing approaches to nature conservation and flexible multi-stakeholder approaches to environmental management. In the developing world, an even greater variety of perspectives has emerged on the opportunities and threats for using compensation and rewards for environmental services. Within that background, the paper clarifies key concepts—including the distinction between compensation and reward —and presents a conceptual framework for typifying and characterizing different types of mechanisms that link ecosystem stewards, ecosystem service beneficiaries, and intermediaries.

Using conjoint analysis to estimate farmer's preferences for cattle traits in West Africa

This paper estimates the preferences of farmers for cattle traits in southern Burkina Faso using conjoint analysis, a survey-based system for measuring preferences for multiple-attribute goods. Here the technique is used in the context of a West African country where literacy is low, where cattle perform multiple functions, where low-input management is the norm, and where cattle are exposed to a number of tropical diseases and other environmental stresses. The results reflect the production practices of the region, suggesting that important traits in developing breed improvement programs should include disease resistance, fitness for traction and reproductive performance. Beef and milk production are less important traits. The study shows the potential usefulness of conjoint analysis for quantifying preferences in less developed countries for livestock and for the wide variety of other multiple-attribute goods. One implication is that conjoint analysis provides a quantitative methodology that helps make diverse livelihood strategies more operational. Distinguishing differences in preferences between groups of respondents in connection with specific agro-ecological zones and production systems can be used to promote conservation-through-use of breeds at risk of extinction.

Evaluating willingness to contribute to a local public good: Application of contingent valuation to tsetse control in Ethiopia

Abstract African animal trypanosomiasis constrains the production of milk, meat and animal traction across much of sub-Saharan Africa. The tsetse-transmitted disease is particularly important in Ethiopia where at least six million cattle are exposed to the disease. In 1990 a trypanosomiasis control programme that used baited targets to kill tsetse flies was initiated in a case-study area in southwest Ethiopia. Major reductions in the density of tsetse flies and the prevalence of trypanosomiasis in cattle achieved during the first year were spoiled by the theft of a large number of the targets. It was postulated that part of the problem stemmed from a lack of local involvement. A survey of household heads was conducted to assess the prospects for greater local involvement. When asked what ought to be done to stop theft, respondents indicated their willingness to become more active in guarding the targets and detecting thieves. They also suggested roles for the research organization and local authorities. When asked contingent valuation questions about the maximum amounts of money and/or labour that they would be willing to contribute to the programme, 59% volunteered both money and labour and only 3% volunteered neither money nor labour. Willingness to contribute money was related to the gender of the household head, the number of cattle held by the household and the participation of the household in a monitoring exercise being conducted by the research organization. Willingness to contribute labour was related to employment status and the information available to the respondent about the programme. We conclude that contingent valuation, when integrated into a participatory research approach, can generate practical results for evaluating the prospects for local participation in the provision of local public goods.

Evaluating contingent and actual contributions to a local public good: Tsetse control in the Yale agro-pastoral zone, Burkina Faso

Abstract In this case study of the Yale agro-pastoral zone in southern Burkina Faso, the sustainability of tsetse control as a local public good was shown to depend upon farmers’ contributions to establish and maintain the traps and targets that attract and kill tsetse flies. Contingent valuation (CV) techniques were used to generate estimates of farmers’ willingness to pay for tsetse control in money, labour, or both forms of payment. Of the 261 households that participated in the CV survey, these proportions were 23, 37 and 40%, respectively, indicating differentiation among the population and an overall preference for labour contribution. A comparison of predicted versus actual contribution of labour indicated that only 56% of households that said they would contribute actually contributed; 3% of households that said they would not contribute actually contributed. Major factors affecting contingent contributions of labour in discrete choice models were identified as well as those to account for in any successful scheme for actual labour contribution. These factors include the age of household head, offtake of cattle, involvement in secondary activities, membership in rural organizations, current expenditure on drug therapy, and cash-on-hand. The results also indicate that full cost-recovery of the investment in targets—about US

The Conditions for Functional Mechanisms of Compensation and Reward for Environmental Services

8000—could not be achieved in the short run with the proposed contribution of US

Property rights and land use change: Implications for sustainable resource management in Borana, southern Ethiopia

0.90–1.00 per month per household. Contingent contributions of money were interpreted as maximum donations to expect of beneficiaries as part of the total cost of providing tsetse control.

High-Carbon-Stock Rural-Development Pathways in Asia and Africa: Improved Land Management for Climate Change Mitigation

Mechanisms of compensation and reward for environmental services (CRES) are becoming increasingly contemplated as means for managing human-environment interactions. Most of the functional mechanisms in the tropics have been developed within the last 15 years; many developing countries still have had little experience with functional mechanisms. We consider the conditions that foster the origin and implementation of functional mechanisms. Deductive and inductive approaches are combined. Eight hypotheses are derived from theories of institution and policy change. Five case studies, from Latin America, Africa, and Asia, are then reviewed according to a common framework. The results suggest the following to be important conditions for functional CRES mechanisms: (1) localized scarcity for particular environmental services, (2) influence from international environmental agreements and international organizations, (3) government policies and public attitudes favoring a mixture of regulatory and market- based instruments, and (4) security of individual and group property rights.

Irrigation management and poverty dynamics: case study of the Nyando Basin in Western Kenya

ABSTRACT The Borana rangelands occur in a semi-arid area in southern Ethiopia, characterized by extensive livestock production. The area is a valuable source of livestock that generates income and livelihoods for large numbers of rural dwellers, and export earnings for Ethiopias fragile economy. Despite the regions high ecological potential vis-à-vis livestock production, the area is still in a crisis today with limited success of development interventions, due to increasing pressure on the rangelands—appropriation of land by private individuals, with aggravated impacts of droughts, emerging conflicts and destitution. These trends are hypothetically attributed to various factors, including climatic, demographic and market forces. The paper utilizes data from forty pastoral communities in the area to identify the causes of these trends and potential consequences on rural livelihoods. The study infers that the Borana pastoral system is in transition, with evidence of departure from traditional pastoralism to a semi-sedentary system with increasing reliance on crops and private grazing. The semi-arid nature of the area-aggregate mean rainfall between 300 mm and 900 mm per annum-creates a concern about the capacity of the area to support a fully privatized system on a sustainable basis.

Developing Alberta’s greenhouse gas offset system within Canadian and international policy contexts

Low-carbon (emission) economic development pathways are needed to contain and gradually slow emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHGs) that cause global climate change. As developing countries contribute to GHG emissions largely through land management practices that degrade landscape carbon stocks, climate change strategies in developing countries must give specific attention to land management. Yet, current mechanisms for international investment or incentives in emission reductions from the land use sector, especially reduced emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD+) and the clean development mechanism (CDM), have so far been slow to develop. Prospects remain good, however. Intensification of land use through tree-based production systems has emerged as a principal rural development pathway in much of Southeast Asia, with significant benefits for reducing GHG emissions, generating economic returns, providing ecosystem services, and adapting to climate change. In Africa, intensification of tree-based production systems has been much slower to develop despite great biophysical potential. This chapter develops the concept of a high-carbon-stock rural-development (HCSRD) pathway as an extension of the tree cover (forest) transition model and compares experiences of HCSRDP development in Asia and Africa. Those experiences show that achieving a HCSRD pathway requires coordinated attention to interactions and trade-offs among forestry, agriculture, and rural development. Innovative finance mechanisms, enabling policy and institutional environments, effective and efficient extension systems, and appropriate investment strategies can catalyze tree-based or agroforestry enterprises and optimize trade-offs between the multiple functions of landscapes.