0811-C2

Albania report: Forest as a safety net for the poor: Food and energy security, health products and services, employment, heritage, self-achievement, influencing factors and trends

Haki Kola, Maxhun Dida, Vasillaq Mine, Hilmar Foellmi and Janaq Male ¹

Abstract

More than half of the country's surface is classified as forests (1026000 ha) and pastures (446000 ha), and more than 50% of population still live in these rural areas. All forest and pasture areas are administrated and managed by the Directorate General of forest and pasture (DGFP). No other sector has such a fundamental impact on Albania's poverty-stricken rural population as the forest and pasture sector.

Albanian society has undergone a fundamental transition since 1990, marked by changes in the production structures, high unemployment, unprecedented emigration, changes to the family structure and to the socio-economic dynamics within the family itself. Compared to other sectors, the forestry sector has suffered greatly from this transition.

In Albania, poverty reduction is a national objective and most projects or programmes have at least a partial objective to reduce the nation's poverty.

The Albania Forestry Project (FP) funded by the World Bank (WB) and by the Italian and Swiss Governments is being implemented with the following objectives, among others: achieving a sustainable increase in the productivity of forest and pasture areas, and empowering local governments to meet the requirements of the population for forest and pasture products, developing non-wood products, and protection and restoration of the natural ecosystem. Poverty reduction is one of the overriding objectives of the FP and in the course of its six years of activities it has involved a wide spectrum of the country's population.

As a result of the FP, the following activities have been carried out: thinning (16000 ha), forestation (820 ha), erosion-control fencing and wall construction (6300 m³), pasture improvements (350 ha), construction and reconstruction of water points for livestock (117). These have a direct impact on the improvement of degraded forest/pasture areas, employment in rural areas and improvement of incomes. Also, there have been attitudinal changes towards health and education.

1. Introduction

Albania has important and diverse forest resources. Forest are situated in the mountain area where still live more than 50% of population.

Besides of considerable number of the workers employed on timber harvesting and some other activities in forestry sector, providing grazing and fodder for livestock is the second main profit for local communities.

Forest resources have been degraded significantly over the last 10 years. The degradation has been mainly caused by human pressure on forest resources (i.e. uncontrolled wood cutting and overgrazing). In parallel with degradation, investment in forest management have dropped considerably since the mid 1980s.

After 1996, Forestry project is the main source for investment in the forestry sector.

Poverty reduction is one of the overriding objectives of the FP that in the course of its six years of activities has involved a wide spectrum of the country's population. Qualitative assessments indicate that the project as a whole has had a positive impact on poverty alleviation and that particularly the Communal Forest/Pasture Management (CFPM) component with its targeted interventions in rural areas, has contributed significantly to reducing poverty in very vulnerable areas.

2. Poverty Situation in Albania

The Albanian society underwent a fundamental transition since 1990, marked by changes in the production structures, high unemployment, unprecedented emigration, changes to the family structure and to the socio-economic dynamics within the family itself. This phenomena is more evident in mountain areas where economic possibilities are very limited. The WB ranks Albania 100-th on its list of 174 poor countries and Albania is the Eastern European country with the highest level of poverty ².

Based on defined national indicators, this study has been designed solely to assess the impact of the FP on poverty reduction as related to follow five indicators.

Aiming to reduce the poverty and improve the forest in rural areas, Forestry project has had certain criteria for involvement of communes in the project. One of this is their social-economic situation that means poorest communes evaluated by different studies in Albania.

2.1. Income as an indicator of poverty

The low or very low level of income is a measure of poverty. The analysis of poverty through incomes is based on two levels of relative poverty. -"The poor" and" very poor ". The very poor are those living on less than USD 1 /day, whereas people living on less than USD 2 /day are classified as poor. In rural areas, where Forestry Project is more focused, 1 in 6 families lives on less than USD 1/day and 1 in 2 families lives on less than USD 2/day.

Tab.1. Trend of total annual cash-equivalent income for households in Project areas (in USD).

In mountain areas, employment in the forestry sector (in State or Communal Forests) is the only opportunity for local employment and one of the main factors reducing poverty and emigration.³ Forest and pasture areas also provide conditions for grazing and for the production of fodder for livestock that can contribute to household income. While this is a very crucial potential for revenue generation for the rural population, overgrazing has had a very detrimental impact on the sustainability of the resources in some areas and, if left uncontrolled, will result in diminishing returns for the population.

2.2. Health as an indicator of poverty

Lack of access to and the quality of health services has been identified as a main indicator of Poverty in Albania.⁴ According to Ministry of Health statistics, the average life expectancy in Albania is relatively high: 69 years for men and 75 years for women. In 1996, only 6% of the health budget was spent on basic health services in rural communities.

2.3. Educational as an indicator of poverty

During the last 10 years, public financing for education has covered 10% of the budget expenditures, but this share has been constantly decreasing. These indicators fell from 3.8% in 1995, to 3.3% in the year 2000, which is much lower than in East-European Countries. The enrolled level has fallen for both preschool and secondary education. The figures indicate tangible decreases 37% and 36% respectively (compared with the 1990 level).⁵

2.4. Exposure to high risk as an indicator of poverty

According to the WB's study about 75 % of the poor families in addition to their economic problems (lack of income or unemployment), also suffer from social problems, such as divorce, death of one of the household heads, disability and health problems. However, there is no clear-cut division between the groups at risk and economic poverty because they are inter-related and determine one another.

2.5. Exclusion from decision-making as an indicator of poverty

The poor have little voice or influence in today's decision-making processes.The Government's policies are clearly intended to shift power from the central level to the local level. Among the important policy developments in Albania are the recognition of private property rights and the privatization of public property; decentralization and strengthening of the role and capacity of local government; continued transformation to a market-driven economy. The development of forestry and pasture sector activities throughout the country and to ensure their optimal contribution to the socio-economic growth and sustainable development of the country.⁶ A concrete example of decentralization is the Government's Commune transfer programme,

3. Methodology of study

The Work Group consisting of representatives of Multi-Agency related with forestry .The main task of the study was to define the effects of the FP on poverty reduction based on two main indicators, (i) employment of the people and growth of their incomes, and (ii) improvement of the forest and increment of annual growth as a long term revenue.

Based on random scheme are identified several sample areas spread in all Albania where FP operate (20 communes were selected from the list of 60). Six target groups: forestry departments, forestry associations, private contractors, local government, forestry workers and householders, are identified for data collection according to specific questionnaires prepared for this study. The simple size for the participants in the Forestry Project was estimated with specified absolute precision based in some parameters: P=50%, confidence level 90%, preliminary minimum simple size was 68. As a result the minimum sample size required was 140 households for direct receivers from FP. The second sample size (non-participants in the project) was 49. It was determined to have 7 responders for each cluster as a minimum cluster size. A data processing program is used for statistic analysis based on the collected data in the field.

Several sample plots are taken in forests of 20 selected communes to determine the changes of the annual growth in the forests where are cared out different interventions funded by FP.

4. Forestry Project (FP)

4.1. Components and activities.

The FP is an integrated project combining all aspects of forest resource administration, management and protection and consists of the four components; (i) Institutional development, (ii) Sustainable forest management, (iii) Communal forest and pasture management, (iv) Protected areas management.

The FP focuses on four main aspects of forest and pasture management: institutional strengthening, sustainable forest management, communal forest and pasture management and protected areas management. In combination, these components are expected to have a direct and positive impact on the productivity of these areas, on the reduction of erosion and protection of the many irrigation schemes spread in rural areas. Project activities are also expected to halt the current degradation process that is most threatening to biodiversity and sustainability of ecosystems.

4.2. People employment and Improvements of forest and pasture

The investments made by the FP in forest and pasture improvements are expected to have a significant long-term impact on forest and pasture resources. In line with the project objectives, the FP has invested into all crucial aspects of forest and pasture management. Commencing with a revised resource planning approach the project has introduced more integrated and participatory resource planning both for state forest management and communal forest/pasture management. To date some 125 such management plans have been prepared and most of them are at various stages of implementation. Implementation activities include thinning (16,000 ha), forestation (820 ha), erosion control fencing and wall construction (6300 m3), pasture improvements (350 ha), construction and reconstruction of water points for livestock (117), equal with 40.000 month man.

Based on statistic analysis we have this results:

Tab. 2 Annual cash incomes from Forestry Project activities per household.

Tab.3 Benefits from forests for all households.

In support of better resource management, monitoring and control, the FP has made significant investments in improvement of infrastructure of Forestry Service. Significant investments were also made in improving the working environment for forest service staff through community participation. An important aspect for the sustainability of FP activities is the extensive training programme that is being supported by the FP.

5. The World Food Programme (WFP)

In October 2000, the Government of Albania formally approached WFP to provide assistance in support of Communal Forestry and Pasture Management in order to expedite the progress of implementation. After discussions with responsible institutions, WFP decided to participate in the Communal Forestry and Pastures Management component with monthly food package .

6. Main Findings

Probably the most important finding of this assessment is that the FP has been able to work with the most appropriate target group, namely the extreme poor in the rural areas, mainly, but not exclusively through the communal forest component.

The median total income of the surveyed households in 2001 was 929 $, including the cash contributions of the FP and in-kind benefits such as food supplements and the benefits from the utilization of forest and pasture resources.

1. The level of income from forestry activities for participating households is estimated at about 270 $/year, or 30% of total income. This is in line with the level of input, which is on average about 3 months. The contribution of WFP is targeting the most direct need and gives households some more room to make expenditures for other needs.

2. In providing these opportunities for additional income and in improving the forest resources potential, the FP has contributed to strengthening the sense of security by increasing the disposable income. The findings of the survey suggest that financial resources from the FP are a contributing factor for health and education and that the awareness about both aspects has increased due to the FP.

3. One of the critical findings of this survey is that people want to work and be self-reliant. Employment opportunities are what most people want.

4. However, it is not only the cash contributions from forestry that are considered beneficial. Forests are clearly of paramount importance for providing a livelihood for the rural population. All families that live in rural areas have additional benefits directly from the forest of a cash equivalent of about 205 $/year from grazing, fodder collection and fuelwood. Its expected 20% increment of this amount every coming year.

Economic hardship is by far the most cited risk factor in rural areas and also the main reason why almost 70% of the respondents have considered migration. Barriers to migration have prevented them from doing so, and for many the FP has made staying a bit easier.

7. Effects on Natural Resources

The FP has a direct impact on the on the future potential of the resources and environment. The investments into forestation, thinning, protection from grazing and erosion control have added to the forest growing stock, and growing potential in the communes and will contribute a future stream of benefits to these communes. The expected future benefits are in form of better grazing opportunities, increased yields of fodder for livestock, sustainability in fuelwood production, higher value of commercial timber and higher production of non timber product.

One of the main activities of FP is rehabilitation of degraded forest, mainly oak forest situated closed to the villages. In 60 communes where is completed transfer process, there were 120,000 ha of oak degraded forest with estimated annual growth of less than 1 m3/ha. Because of FP investments focused more on protection from overgrazing and illegal cutting, thinning, and thanks to good ecological conditions of Albania, after 5 years we have very different situation. Based on many surveys and measurements done in several sample plots spread on random scheme in 20 communes (out of 60), there are interesting results: 80% (96,000ha) of the oak forest are rehabilitated, mean age of trees 10 years, mean annual height increment 60 cm, mean diameter of trees 3.6 cm, mean annual increment 3.5 m3/ha, mean number of trees per ha 30,000.

This impact of FP on annual increment of forest is very important as a long term generated income for local people. In other wards rehabilitated forest are like "Savings Bank" for future generated incomes for local communities.

8. Effects on Organizations

The majority of organizations, state or private, noticed an overall increase in funding over the last five-year period and for 57 % of the respondents this increase is due to FP activities. The contributions of the FP is especially important for the Communal Forest/Pasture Users Association (CFPUA) and the private companies who received some 80% of their 2001 revenues from the FP.

Some 73% of the organizations expect the future situation in the forest and pasture sector to improve, even without the assistance by a project.

At the commune level, the overall condition with respect to forest and pasture resources should gradually improve, especially in areas where the CFPUA manage their forests and pastures properly and generate revenues from fees and from the sales of products from forests and pastures.

The contributions made by the FP in terms of infrastructure, and particularly training, have significantly increased functionality and the efficiency of the Forestry Service.

9. Conclusions

1. From the data collected and analyzed it can be concluded that the FP has had a positive impact on poverty reduction in Albania in those areas where project activities were implemented. Over 50% of the household expenditures go towards covering food costs, which is very characteristic for very poor households.

2. Although this contribution is relatively significant, it is not enough to change the poverty status of the affected families, which remain extremely poor. It is clearly evident, that the additional cash resources and food supplements are an important contribution that facilitates coping with the serious problems caused by poverty.

3. That the rehabilitation of degraded forest and sustainable management is the main way to achieve long-term revenues for local communities.

4. Closer analysis however shows that this optimism rests on the assumption that the government of Albania continues to invest into the sector after the completion of the FP. Indeed, achieving these general expectations, the efforts towards sustainable forest and pasture management have to be continued.

10. Recommendations

1) The considerable technological and infrastructural improvements introduced by the FP should be an incentive for the government to secure the needed resources to build on and fully benefit from the investments made so far by the FP.

2) Capacity building and participatory processes should be further developed in connection with the decentralization process and DGFP extension services should be strengthened.

3) Since in many areas it will take considerable time until communal forests and pasture areas become sufficiently productive to provide a net return to the people in the communes, some projections based on management plan interventions should also be prepared.

4) Environmental and natural resources management planning should be more and more based on watersheds, rather than on smaller management units.

5) With the review of the legal framework of the forest sector, the further steps towards private ownership of forest and pastureland should be considered as one of the options to solve rural poverty.

¹ Project Director, Albania Forestry Project, Rruga Sami Frasheri 4, Tirana e Re, Tirana, Albania. [email protected]

² Albania has a per capita GNP of about 786 $/year (source: GPRS-2001,pp 41).

³ Michel Midre report "Communal Forest and Pasture Management Evaluation Report"

⁴ Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy - GPRS 2002-2004

⁵ Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy 2001

⁶ The strategy for the development of the forestry and pasture sector in Albania, 1999.