Abstract
It is widely recognised that government intervention in development
issues can shape people's perceptions and experiences. This study
examined the influence of a Ministry-based extension system on
community-based, problem animal control and perceptions among local
arable farmers at the eastern Okavango Panhandle in northern Botswana.
Using a survey of 388 arable farmers and key informant interviews, our
results showed that participation of local people in the implementation
of the participatory project was vital for improving people's
perceptions and gaining adoption of the innovations, and significantly
contributing to project outcomes. Lack of people participation in
decision making, the extent to which farmers perceived extension agents
as trustworthy, the number of extension agents and extension delivery
methods were found to be important factors explaining farmers'
perceptions and adoption decisions. Analyses also indicated that
knowledge development alone (which is a form of community empowerment)
was not enough to encourage participation and innovation adoption.
Village project committee (VPC) members' and farmers' remarks about
their socioeconomic hardships suggested that they preferred economic
incentives over any other incentives. This suggests that community's
immediate needs for livelihood and food security are among the locally
pressing needs that should be addressed to drive people's commitment to
the project. From a policy perspective, our results underscore the need
to implement comprehensive interventions that address wildlife
management and community development, and actively involve local people
in management and decision making to achieve sustainability in human
elephant conflict management. There is need, therefore, for government
(particularly the wildlife departments) to provide an institutional
structure for supporting community-based governance for the purpose of
ensuring effective and sustainable wildlife management and conservation.
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