IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/natres/v50y2026i1p453-468.html

Opportunities and challenges in the implementation of the Community Environment Conservation Fund: Implications for conservation of endangered tree species

Author

Listed:
  • Moruleng Alex
  • Ilukor John
  • Bashaasha Bernard

Abstract

The shea tree (Vitellaria paradoxa), one of the indigenous tree species in sub‐Saharan Africa, is facing extinction because of its hardwood, which provides the best fuel wood, and its charcoal is the best amongst all tree species in Uganda. To conserve these trees in Northern Uganda, the Community Environment Conservation Fund was implemented to help communities harness its benefits, such as carbon sequestration, microenvironment regulation and income generation through the sale of shea nuts and shea butter. As a result, there was a need to understand the opportunities and challenges in the implementation of the Community Environment Conservation Fund. Qualitative methods like the key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used and a participatory process mapping tool called the Process Net‐Map was applied to identify the actors involved and assess their level of influence in the implementation process, eliciting the opportunities and challenges faced. The research findings showed multiple opportunities in the conservation efforts, including enhanced adoption of community‐conservation by‐laws, positive mindset change towards shea tree and environmental conservation, improved credit access, diversification of income‐generating alternatives and asset creation. However, some challenges existed during the implementation phase, including moral hazard, strategic defaulting, free riding and limited financial resources. Each of these challenges significantly impacted the effectiveness and sustainability of the fund, enlightening the need for adaptive strategies. Some strategies identified were enhancing training, especially regarding fund management and enterprise selection; increasing the startup funds to at least UGX 3,000,000 ($790) per group; incorporating the declining balance approach; and lengthening the gestation period to at least 6 months. By addressing these challenges, more resilient and sustainable conservation efforts can be made, safeguarding the invaluable shea trees for future generations.

Suggested Citation

  • Moruleng Alex & Ilukor John & Bashaasha Bernard, 2026. "Opportunities and challenges in the implementation of the Community Environment Conservation Fund: Implications for conservation of endangered tree species," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 50(1), pages 453-468, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:natres:v:50:y:2026:i:1:p:453-468
    DOI: 10.1111/1477-8947.12580
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-8947.12580
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/1477-8947.12580?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Amon Simba & Mahdi Tajeddin & Léo-Paul Dana & Domingo E. Ribeiro Soriano, 2024. "Deconstructing involuntary financial exclusion: a focus on African SMEs," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 285-305, January.
    2. Pilar López-Sánchez & Elena Urquía-Grande & Cristina Campo & Andrés L. Cancer, 2022. "Delving into the Determinants of Default Risk in Savings Groups: Empirical Evidence from Ecuador," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 34(6), pages 2625-2650, December.
    3. Fisher, Monica, 2004. "Household welfare and forest dependence in Southern Malawi," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 9(2), pages 135-154, May.
    4. Okumu, Boscow & Muchapondwa, Edwin, 2020. "Welfare and forest cover impacts of incentive based conservation: Evidence from Kenyan community forest associations," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    5. Arzi Adbi & Matthew Lee & Jasjit Singh, 2024. "Community influence on microfinance loan defaults under crisis conditions: Evidence from Indian demonetization," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(3), pages 535-563, March.
    6. Madajewicz, Malgosia, 2011. "Joint liability versus individual liability in credit contracts," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 77(2), pages 107-123, February.
    7. Kemigisha, Esther & Babweteera, Fred & Mugisha, Johnny & Angelsen, Arild, 2023. "Payment for environmental services to reduce deforestation: Do the positive effects last?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 209(C).
    8. Takashi Kurosaki & Hidayat Ullah Khan, 2012. "Vulnerability Of Microfinance To Strategic Default And Covariate Shocks: Evidence From Pakistan," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 50(2), pages 81-115, June.
    9. Turpie, Jane & Letley, Gwyneth, 2021. "Would community conservation initiatives benefit from external financial oversight? A framed field experiment in Namibia’s communal conservancies," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    10. Hermes, Niels & Lensink, Robert & Mehrteab, Habteab T., 2005. "Peer Monitoring, Social Ties and Moral Hazard in Group Lending Programs: Evidence from Eritrea," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 149-169, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Peter J. Simmons & Nongnuch Tantisantiwong, 2022. "The Socially Optimal Loan Auditing with Multiple Projects," Discussion Papers 22/07, Department of Economics, University of York.
    2. Cao, Bo & Zhu, Hongge & Wang, Yufang, 2025. "Has China's “only-out, no-in” staff-reduction policy alleviated the material deprivation of forestry worker families? Evidence from China's Natural Forest Protection Program," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).
    3. Gelade, Wouter & Guirkinger, Catherine, 2018. "The enforcement advantage of external monitoring: Lessons from an experiment with joint-liability groups in Burkina Faso," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 307-325.
    4. Meishan Jiang & Krishna P. Paudel & Seydina O. Sene, 2022. "Does counter‐guarantee affect microcredit mechanism's performance on repayment? Evidence from Guangzhou, China," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(2), pages 1807-1817, April.
    5. Andersson, Krister P. & Smith, Steven M. & Alston, Lee J. & Duchelle, Amy E. & Mwangi, Esther & Larson, Anne M. & de Sassi, Claudio & Sills, Erin O. & Sunderlin, William D. & Wong, Grace Y., 2018. "Wealth and the distribution of benefits from tropical forests: Implications for REDD+," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 510-522.
    6. Dufhues, Thomas & Buchenrieder, Gertrud & Quoc, Hoang Dinh & Munkung, Nuchanata, 2011. "Social capital and loan repayment performance in Southeast Asia," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 679-691.
    7. Pouliot, Mariève & Treue, Thorsten, 2013. "Rural People’s Reliance on Forests and the Non-Forest Environment in West Africa: Evidence from Ghana and Burkina Faso," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 180-193.
    8. Luminita Postelnicu & Niels Hermes, 2018. "Microfinance Performance and Social Capital: A Cross-Country Analysis," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 427-445, December.
    9. Li Gan & Manuel A. Hernandez & Yanyan Liu, 2018. "Group Lending With Heterogeneous Types," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 56(2), pages 895-913, April.
    10. Liyan Yu & Jerker Nilsson & Feng Zhan & Song Cheng, 2023. "Social Capital in Cooperative Memberships and Farmers’ Access to Bank Credit–Evidence from Fujian, China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-18, February.
    11. Porro, Roberto & Lopez-Feldman, Alejandro & Vela-Alvarado, Jorge W., 2015. "Forest use and agriculture in Ucayali, Peru: Livelihood strategies, poverty and wealth in an Amazon frontier," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 47-56.
    12. Sjöstedt, Martin & Sundström, Aksel & Jagers, Sverker C. & Ntuli, Herbert, 2022. "Governance through community policing: What makes citizens report poaching of wildlife to state officials?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    13. Shyamsundar, Priya & Ahlroth, Sofia & Kristjanson, Patricia & Onder, Stefanie, 2020. "Supporting pathways to prosperity in forest landscapes – A PRIME framework," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    14. Saeed Nosratabadi & Gergo Pinter & Amir Mosavi & Sandor Semperger, 2020. "Sustainable Banking; Evaluation of the European Business Models," Papers 2003.13423, arXiv.org.
    15. López-Feldman, Alejandro, 2014. "Shocks, Income and Wealth: Do They Affect the Extraction of Natural Resources by Rural Households?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 64(S1), pages 91-100.
    16. Mostafizur, Rahman Md. & Asma, Khatun Mst. & Islam, Moinul & Saijo, Tatsuyoshi & Kotani, Koji, 2025. "Does future design induce people to make a persistent change to sustainable food consumption?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    17. Rayamajhi, Santosh & Smith-Hall, Carsten & Helles, Finn, 2012. "Empirical evidence of the economic importance of Central Himalayan forests to rural households," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 25-35.
    18. Vorlaufer, Tobias & Steimanis, Ivo & Plassenberg, Jan, 2025. "Payment for ecosystem services and crowding of conservation behavior: A meta-analysis of lab-in-the-field experiments," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    19. Babulo, Bedru & Muys, Bart & Nega, Fredu & Tollens, Eric & Nyssen, Jan & Deckers, Jozef & Mathijs, Erik, 2009. "The economic contribution of forest resource use to rural livelihoods in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(2), pages 123-131, March.
    20. Naidu, Sirisha C., 2011. "Gendered effects of work and participation in collective forest management," MPRA Paper 31091, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:natres:v:50:y:2026:i:1:p:453-468. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1111/(ISSN)1477-8947 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.