Participatory forestry as a strategy for reforestation in Bangladesh

Deforestation has been a serious ecological problem in Bangladesh for the past four decades. Illegal logging, demand for fuelwood and farmland encroachment are the principal causes of dwindling biomass resource. About 17.8% of the total area of the country are under forest cover (BBS 1993), but less than half of that area are under real tree formations. It is estimated that Bangladesh loses its forest lands by about 3.3% every year (World Bank 1994). This paper attempts to present a review of a newer strategy to meet this challenge; a strategy, not merely of halting deforestation, but of reforestation on a national scale and through people's participation in the process.In response to the crisis in the forestry sector, traditional government forest management programs have been replaced by participatory forestry in recent years as the principal strategy for reforestation. This change in strategy has two goals (1) encourage new plantations, and (2) generate income and create jobs for the rural poor. Participatory forestry is a benefit sharing scheme in which the landless and the marginal farmers are employed in tree plantation work.