On the use of goal-oriented project planning for protected area management in Nepal Article

Heinen, JT, Rayamajhi, S. (2001). On the use of goal-oriented project planning for protected area management in Nepal . 3(4), 227-236. 10.1017/S1466046600002787

cited authors

  • Heinen, JT; Rayamajhi, S

authors

abstract

  • As a result of increased awareness about the nature and extent of park-people conflicts in Nepal in the 1980s - and the liberalization of protected area management worldwide - great strides have been made in-country that have liberalized protected area management and allowed for some local control of resources. A new category of protected area and a comprehensive buffer zone policy are hallmarks of the government's efforts at involving local people in protected area management during the 1990s. As with many other least-developed nations, however, Nepal has lacked resources for the formulation of comprehensive management plans for its protected areas. The Park People Programme, a multi-year project of the United Nations Development Programme and the Government of Nepal, has recently instituted Goal-Oriented Project Planning as an inexpensive way to plan managerial activities needed to conserve resources within protected areas and buffer zones. The technique relies on the use of management planning workshops that include representatives of important interest groups, and follow-up workshops for implementation. Here we describe the approach and discuss its strengths and weaknesses. Strengths include the fact that the approach is efficient and cost-effective given limited financial and human resources in the conservation sector typical of most developing countries. Weaknesses include the very short duration of meetings and lack of budgetary information needed to implement plans over the entire planning period. The method shows potential for expansion in Nepal and adoption by other nations, but several improvements and follow-up activities are needed based on this assessment and on qualitative information gathered from workshop participants. These include longer workshops, more facilitators, and long-term assessments of the use of the method, as well as implementation of management plans generated by the method. © 2001 National Association of Environmental Professionals.

publication date

  • January 1, 2001

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

start page

  • 227

end page

  • 236

volume

  • 3

issue

  • 4