Participatory Forest Management Implementation and Its Impacts on Access to Livelihood Assets: The Case of Illubabor and Buno-Bedele Zones, Southwest Ethiopia

Participatory Forest Management (PFM) approach has been implemented in Ethiopia since the mid-1990s, with the policy goal of improving the socioeconomic well-being of rural communities living in and around forest areas. However, little information is available on the extent to which PFM has improved livelihood assets. Therefore, this study empirically assessed the impact of PFM implementation on access to livelihood assets in the Illubabor and Buno-Bedele zones of southwest Ethiopia, using the Sustainable Livelihood Framework as the guiding conceptual model. A three-stage sampling technique was used to select the PFM sites and sample household heads. Quantitative data were collected through a structured questionnaire that was administered to 270 randomly selected households. Qualitative data were also gathered from 27 key informant interviews, 9 focus group discussions, and personal observations. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test, paired sample t-test, and independent t-test. The results showed a statistically significant increase in the overall livelihood asset index, rising from 0.57 before the PFM intervention to 0.71 after its implementation (p < .05). Additionally, the findings revealed that PFM members had a significantly higher overall livelihood asset value (0.71) than non-PFM members (0.56). Moreover, the findings found significant variations in access to livelihood assets among the PFM cooperatives. The Abdi bori cooperative had the highest level of access, while the Bita-Mute, Asendabo cora, and Huta-none cooperatives had lower levels. It can be concluded that the study demonstrated that the PFM intervention had a significant and positive impact on participants’ livelihoods. In light of these positive outcomes, the study recommends expanding the intervention to other non-PFM sites.