On Tue, 4 Jun 1996, Donald Mansius wrote: Michael, while I agree completely with Donald when it comes to individual property rights over forest plantations in developing countries, some schemes exist in India for example where the communities (or villages) plant trees and take care of them. Often international assistance is provided for these schemes which also look at land degradation. Those community plantations cannot really be considered as government plantations and there is very little opportunities for individuals in many developing countries to own large pieces of land and therefore afford to have plantations except corporations but of course those prefer to log native forests rather than planting. Jean-Claude > On 03 June 1996, Michael John Painter wrote: > >`TREE-PLANTING INCENTIVES' > [clip] > >Dear Reader, > > > >I am doing a `comparative study of private tree planting incentives in > developing countries' > >for my M.Sc. dissertation, which has to be complete by the end of August. > The dissertation > >will collate existing schemes and proposals - financial, fiscal etc. I have > already searched Tree > >CD and located some sources of literature and contacted the main funding > bodies in the UK. > > > >A key question is whether financial inducements to plant trees (as used in > most of the > >developed world) have a place in the developing countries? Farmers in the > tropics (like farmers > > everywhere) are reluctant to invest time, money, and labour in a > long-payback crop like timber- > >trees (as opposed to fruit trees). Several tree planting grant or loan > schemes exist in the tropics, > >but it is unclear how successful they've been. Many aid agencies feel that > such inducements are > > `unsustainable' - even if they work in the short term. > > > >I would be grateful if you or a colleague could help with any information > or documents or > >suggest material, people or places to contact. Any projects which you or > your organisation > > have considered for funding or research proposals will be beneficial to my > study. In return a > >synopsis of my dissertation will be available, on request, which may be of > use to you. > > > >Many thanks and I look forward to your reply. > > > >Yours faithfully, > > > >Michael Painter. > <><><><><><><><><><><><><><>< > With the benefit of a fair amount of hands-on experience in the subject, > IMHO, creating an institutional framework that creates stable, enforceable, > individual property rights in planted trees will do more to encourage > farmers in the so-called developing countries to take care of those trees. > The current system in many (most?) developing countries vests property > rights to trees (and land) in the (almighty) state. Forest codes are > enforced by armed, paramilitary forest rangers who terrorize villagers. > Storm troopers is not too strong a term to apply to some of them. What > incentive do individuals have to care for something that belongs to the state? > > Providing incentives or handouts or whatever you want to call them can > increase planting and short-term survival rates, but I agree with the > development agencies that consider them unsustainable. > > UK has so many organizations that do good work overseas. I'm sure a perusal > of their tree-planting project evaluations (if they are willing to share) > would be enlightening. > > Best regards, > Donald Mansius > cndmans@state.me.us >
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