Achievements during the first year

Community based monitoring adopted as a priority issue for CBNRM in Ethiopia amongst government and NGO actors. Little had been done on CBM in many existing projects in Ethiopia, but its importance as an integral component of CBNRM was recognised. An action plan drafted to develop appropriate models and follow up on implementation in partners’ project has catalysed other actors to review their activities and prioritise CBM.

The importance of community based monitoring of natural resources has been recognised and adopted by Guassa CCA and as a result the community are actively and voluntarily contributing their time and resources to CBM. Such strong community engagement should provide a good basis for the sustainability of the approach.

A notable achievement was the development of a partnership with EPLA in Guassa. These government representatives are now fully engaged with project, and are participating in the implementation of CBM in the area and directly involved in data storage, analysis and reporting. This is an important component in ensuring the sustainability of the CBM in is greatly assisting project implementation in the area.

Lessons learned to date

Meeting with Guassa Committee

• The level of capacity of communities is a key element in designing the monitoring systems using appropriate and sustainable technology. Whilst communities need to be empowered governments need to be convinced.
• Working with communities and partners to develop capacity and awareness of the systems, such as CBM, requires considerable effort, time and patience. It is essential to take this into account when planning projects and managing expectations.
• This project has benefited from the experience and reputation of existing projects and partners in order to make relatively rapid progress and minimise start up time. This also greatly enhances the likelihood of achieving proposed outcomes within the short time frame that funding cycles allow.