The reserved forests of Matabeleland, and the communities living in and around them, face increasing and in some cases intractable problems. Around 20,000 people are currently resident within the reserves. For these residents, a principal issue is security of tenure for agricultural land, and secure access to forest products. This insecurity is associated with a high level of unstructured settlement and encroachment within forest reserves. Insecurity of tenure also exacerbates existing problems of access to water, health facilities and schools: neither communities, the FC nor the RDCs are investing in infrastructure. Secure access to forest products is even more of a problem for those communities neighbouring the forest reserves. While some grazing permits are issued, access to other products such as construction materials, firewood and non-timber forest products continues to be restricted.

The lack of secure benefits accruing from the forests to local stakeholders has resulted in limited support for the existing approach to forest conservation among either communities or local government, or even for the continued existence of the forest reserves. Until recently the FC has pursued a policy of either outright eviction or relocation to designated areas within the reserve. Although relocation has been accepted by some of the more recent residents in some of the reserves, the FC policy has been strongly opposed by some of the resident communities. This tension further exacerbates illegal activities, as residents have no incentive to maintain the resource. Indeed, the increasingly hostile nature of the interaction has incited increased abuse of the resource, such as deliberate fires.

There is currently little experience of SFM approaches in Zimbabwe. CIDA has provided support to a pilot project between the FC and those communities living adjacent to the Mafungabusi Forest Reserve. These agreements have not progressed beyond grazing rights, although resource sharing of other forest products is under consideration. There is, however, a significant body of experience from the CAMPFIRE (Communal Areas Management Programme For Indigenous Resources) programme which seeks to use economic incentives to encourage the most appropriate management system for the communal lands. While the generic principles from community-based management of wildlife resources are applicable to SFM, as yet there has been little exchange of learning and experiences between the two sectors.

Livelihoods improved, and conservation achieved, in and around State Forest Reserves (SFR).

Approach to developing Shared Forest Management (SFM) agreed among key stakeholders.

• Increased awareness of potential and requirements of SFM and institutional change among key stakeholders.
• Information on communities, resources and environment within and adjacent to the SFRs collected and analysed.
• Approaches to developing voluntary settlement arrangements for forest residents agreed.
• SFM project proposal.