Perspectives on Forest governance among the indigenous communities of India's Eastern Ghats

Forest plays a significant role in the rural economy. It contributes to food security and provides resources and enterprise opportunities for poor communities. By enabling sustainable local forestry enterprises, effective forest governance regimes have the potential to remove the barriers that prevent the forest from contributing to the livelihoods of poor people. At present, such opportunities seem remote, particularly for Indigenous communities. In this context, a study was conducted in the Eastern Ghats of northern Andhra Pradesh, covering 588 Indigenous villagers living on the forest fringe who were surveyed about the condition of the forest, the uses, and services they provide, and community perspectives on the current forest governance regimes. The data collected were statistically analysed using five participatory indicators of governance quality. The results suggest that although forests had multiple usages and were of high environmental, social, and economic value to the local community, the governance of the forest regimes investigated was not optimal. Low governance ratings, especially in transparency and accountability, indicate a lack of openness and responsibility in managing forest resources, revealing a major flaw in the current regime. This may demonstrate that both traditional and more recent approaches to forest governance are not especially suited to reduce deforestation and forest degradation properly. Consequently, there is a need to address limitations within each management regime and forest governance. Most importantly, it necessitates the full and effective participation of local Indigenous villagers in developing and implementing management regimes.