Determinant Factors Predicting the Dependencies of Local Communities on Plantation Forests and Their Levels of Participation on Management Activities in Basona Worena District, Ethiopia

Abstract

Plantation forests provide numerous benefits to local communities that regularly interact with them. This study aimed at examining the determinant factors predicting the dependencies of local communities on plantation forests and their levels of participation on management activities in Basona Worena District, Ethiopia. To collect data, a survey questionnaire was developed by considering demographic, socio-economic, bio-physical, and institutional factors. The questionnaire was administered to a total of 92 randomly selected households. Descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression models were applied to analyze and interpret the data. The results suggested that the most preferred tree species planted by the local farmers included Eucalyptus, Vachellia abyssinica, and Sesbania sesban. Local communities mainly plant and grow plantation forests for fuelwood, construction materials, source of fodder, and income generation. The multiple linear regression models revealed that several independent variables derived from demographic (i.e., sex, age, and family size), socio-economic (i.e., level of education, annual income, livestock ownership, want to keep more livestock than they have at present, length of residence in the area, have the plan to stay in the area in the future, and have enough labor to manage the tree seedlings planted in their landholdings), bio-physical (i.e., distance between the nearby access road and the land of the respondents where they planted and grew trees), and institutional (i.e., have planted trees in their landholdings, get incentives to plant and grow trees in their landholdings, and have sufficient market to sell their plantation forest products obtained from their landholdings) factors significantly affected and predicted the two groups of the dependent variables, i.e., ‘the dependencies of local communities on plantation forests’ (49% variance explained) and ‘their levels of participation on management activities’ (53% variance explained). The study highlights existing concerns about planting, managing, developing, and sustainably utilizing plantation forests, which may in turn assist policy- and decision-makers, land use planners, environmental analysts, forest conservation and management experts to consider demographic, socio-economic, bio-physical, and institutional factors that affect the dependencies of local communities on plantation forests and their levels of participation on management activities.