Abstract
The community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) program in Botswana has been ongoing for almost two decades. It aims at achieving biodiversity conservation and rural development, especially improved rural livelihoods. The objective of this chapter is to assess whether CBNRM has been successful in achieving its goals of biodiversity conservation and improved rural livelihoods in Botswana. The chapter also investigates the effectiveness of the CBNRM institutional framework in ensuring that CBNRM achieves its goals. Both primary and secondary data sources were collected and analyzed. Results suggest that CBNRM in Botswana largely involves wildlife-based tourism activities such as photographic and safari hunting. CBNRM offers local communities the opportunity to participate in tourism development and natural resource conservation. In the 20 years of its implementation in Botswana, CBNRM has mixed results. That is, some projects have relatively succeeded in achieving either biodiversity conservation or improved rural livelihoods (e.g. employment creation, generation of income, provision of social services) while other projects have collapsed. There are factors that explain the performance of each project (e.g. availability of skilled personnel or lack of capacity building, reinvestment of CBNRM revenue or misappropriation of funds, strong community cohesion or lack of it). Therefore, it is concluded that the success or failure of CBNRM in Botswana depends on several factors which include the effectiveness of the institutional framework of individual CBNRM projects. In this regard, CBNRM should be judged based on the political, social and economic factors of individual projects. However, the success of some CBNRM projects in Botswana demonstrates that CBNRM can be an effective tool to achieve conservation and improved livelihoods.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Arntzen, J., Molokomme, K., Tshosa, O., Moleele, N., Mazambani, D., & Terry, B. (2003). Review of CBNRM in Botswana. Gaborone: Applied Research Unit.
Arntzen, J., Buzwani, B., Setlhogile, T., Kgathi, D. L., & Motsolapheko, M. K. (2007). Community-based resource management, rural livelihoods and environmental sustainability. Gaborone: Centre for Applied Research.
Aronson, J. (1994). A pragmatic view of thematic analysis. The Qualitative Report, 2(1), 1–3.
Baldus, R., & Cauldwell, A. (2004). Introducing a debate on reform in the safari hunting industry. African Indaba, 3, 2–3.
Blaikie, P. (2006). Is small really beautiful? Community-based natural resource management in Malawi and Botswana. World Development, 34(11), 1942–1957.
Boggs, L. P. (2000). Community power, participation, conflict and development choice: Community wildlife conservation in the Okavango Region of northern Botswana (Discussion Paper No. 17). Maun: IIED.
Brandon, K. (1998). Perils to parks: The social context of threats. In K. Redford, K. Brandon, & S. Sanderson (Eds.), Parks in peril: People, politics and protected areas (pp. 415–439). Washington, DC: The Nature Conservancy and Island Press.
Bromley, D. (1992). Making the commons work. San Francisco: Institute for Contemporary Studies.
Campbell, B., Mandondo, A., Nemarundwe, N., Sithole, B., de Jong, W., Luckert, M., et al. (2001). Challenges to the proponents of common property resource systems: Despairing voices from the social forests of Zimbabwe. World Development, 29(4), 589–600.
Child, B. (2000). Application of the southern African wildlife experience to wildlife utilization in Kenya and Tanzania. In H. H. Prins, J. G. Grootenhuis, & T. T. Dolan (Eds.), Wildlife conservation by sustainable use (Conservation biology series, pp. 459–468). London: Kluwer.
Child, B. (2005). Principles, practice and results of CBNRM in southern Africa. In B. Child & L. M. West (Eds.), Natural resources as community assets. Washington, DC: Sand County Foundation and the Aspen Institute.
Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP). (1999). Joint venture guidelines. Gaborone: Department of Wildlife and National Parks.
Duffy, R. (2000). Shadow players: Ecotourism development, corruption and state politics in Belize. Third World Quarterly, 21(3), 549–565.
Ecosurv Environmental Consultants. (2013). Management plan for controlled hunting area CT/3. Gaborone: Botswana Tourism Organization.
Fennell, D. (2001). A content analysis of ecotourism definitions. Current Issues in Tourism, 4, 403–421.
Fortman, L., Roe, E., & Van Eeten, M. (2001). At the threshold between governance and management: Community-based natural resource management in southern Africa. Public Administration and Development, 21, 171–185.
Johnson, S. (2009). State of CBNRM report 2009. Gaborone: Botswana National CBNRM Forum.
Leach, M., Mearns, R., & Scoones, I. (1999). Environmental entitlements: Dynamics and institutions in community-based natural resources management. Wildlife Development, 27, 225–247.
Leininger, M. M. (1985). Ethnography and ethnonursing: Models and modes of qualitative data analysis. In M. M. Leininger (Ed.), Qualitative research methods in nursing (pp. 33–72). Orlando: Grune & Stratton.
Lewis, D., & Alpert, P. (1997). Trophy hunting and wildlife conservation in Zambia. Conservation Biology, 11, 59–68.
Lindsey, P. A., Alexander, R., Frank, L. G., Mathieson, A., & Romañach, S. S. (2006). Potential of trophy hunting to create incentives for wildlife conservation in Africa where alternative wildlife-based land uses may not be viable. Animal Conservation, 9, 283–291.
Locke, H., & Dearden, P. (2005). Rethinking protected area categories and the new paradigm. Environmental Conservation, 32(1), 1–10.
Lowry, S. W. (1994). Structural adjustment and natural resources in sub-Saharan Africa. Society and Natural Resources, 7, 383–387.
Mbaiwa, J. E. (2002). The socio-economic and environmental impacts of tourism development in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Maun: Okavango Research Centre, University of Botswana.
Mbaiwa, J. E. (2004). Prospects of basket production in promoting sustainable rural livelihoods in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. International Journal of Tourism Research, 6, 221–235.
Mbaiwa, J. E. (2005). Wildlife resource utilisation at Moremi game reserve and Khwai community area in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Journal of Environmental Management, 77(2), 144–156.
Mbaiwa, J. E. (2012). Botswana’s community based natural resource management status report for 2011/12. Gaborone: Kalahari Conservation Society.
Mbaiwa, J. E. (2013). CBNRM status report of 2012/13. Gaborone: Kalahari Conservation Society.
Mbaiwa, J. E., & Stronza, A. L. (2010). The effects of tourism development on rural livelihoods in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 18(5), 635–656.
Mwenya, A. N., Lewis, D. M., & Kaweche, G. B. (1991). Policy, background and future: National parks and wildlife services, new administrative management design for game management areas. Lusuka: United States Agency for International Development.
North West District Council (NWDC). (2003). District development plan 6–2003/4–2008/9. Maun: North West District Council.
Oates, J. F. (1999). Myth and reality in the rainforest: How conservation strategies are failing in West Africa. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Orams, M. B. (2001). From whale hunting to whale watching in Tonga: A sustainable future? Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 9(2), 128–146.
Ostrom, E. (1990). Governing the commons: The evolution of institutions for collective action. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Perkins, J. S. (1996). Botswana: Fencing out of the equity issue, cattleposts and cattle ranches in the Kalahari Desert. Journal of Arid Environments, 33, 503–517.
Perkins, J. S., & Ringrose, S. M. (1996). Development cooperations objectives and the beef protocol: The case of Botswana, a study of livestock/wildlife/tourism/degradation linkages. Gaborone: Department of Environmental Science, University of Botswana.
Pimbert, M., & Pretty, J. (1995). Parks, people and professionals: Putting participation into protected area management (Discussion Paper No. 57). Geneva: UNRISD.
Rozemeijer, N., & Van der Jagt, C. (2000). Community-based natural resource management in Botswana: How community-based is community-based natural resource management in Botswana (Occasional paper series). Gaborone: IUCN/SNV CBNRM Support Programme.
Schuster, B. (2007). Proceedings of the 4th national CBNRM conference in Botswana and the CBNRM Status Report (November 20-23, 2006). Gaborone: IUCN Botswana.
Southern African Development Community (SADC). (1999). Protocol on wildlife conservation and law enforcement. Maputo: Southern African Development Community. Retrieved May 26, 2014, from http://www.sadc.int/files/4813/7042/6186/Wildlife_Conservation.pdf
Stronza, A. (2000). Because it is ours: Community-based ecotourism in the Peruvian Amazon. Dissertation, University of Florida.
Swatuk, L. A. (2005). From “project” to “context”: Community based natural resource management in Botswana. Global Environmental Politics, 5, 95–124.
Taylor, M. (2000). Life, land and power: Contesting development in northern Botswana. Dissertation, University of Edinburgh.
Terborgh, J. (1999). Requiem for nature. Washington, DC: Island/Shearwater.
Thakadu, O. T. (2005). Success factors in community-based natural resource management projects’ mobilization in northern Botswana: Lessons from practice. Natural Resource Forum, 29(3), 199–212.
Tsing, A. L., Brosius, J. P., & Zerner, C. (1999). Assessing community-based natural resource management. Ambio, 28, 197–198.
Twyman, C. (2000). Participatory conservation? Community-based natural resource management in Botswana. The Geographical Journal, 166(4), 323–335.
Wearing, S. L. (2001). Exploring socio-cultural impacts on local communities. In D. Weaver (Ed.), Ecotourism (pp. 395–410). New York: Wiley.
Weaver, C. L., & Skyer, P. (2003, September). Conservancies: Integrating wildlife land-use options into the livelihood, development and conservation strategies of Namibian communities. Paper presented at the 5th World Parks Congress, Durban.
Western, D., Wright, M., & Strum, S. (Eds.). (1994). Natural connections: Perspectives in community-based conservation. Washington, DC: Island Press.
Wilkie, D. S., & Carpenter, J. (1999). The potential role of safari hunting as a source of revenue for protected areas in the Congo Basin. Oryx, 33, 340–345.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mbaiwa, J.E. (2015). Community-Based Natural Resource Management in Botswana. In: van der Duim, R., Lamers, M., van Wijk, J. (eds) Institutional Arrangements for Conservation, Development and Tourism in Eastern and Southern Africa. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9529-6_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9529-6_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-017-9528-9
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-9529-6
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)