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Challenges and Institutional Barriers to Forest and Landscape Restoration in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh

Author

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  • Oliver Tirtho Sarkar

    (Department of Environment and Development Studies, United International University, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh)

  • Sharif A. Mukul

    (Department of Environment and Development Studies, United International University, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh
    Tropical Forests and People Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC, QLD 4556, Australia
    Department of Earth and Environment, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA)

Abstract

Preventing, halting, and reversing ecosystem degradation is now a global priority, partly due to the declaration of the United Nations (UN) Decade on Ecosystem Restoration by the UN General Assembly 2021–2030 on 1 March 2019. Apart from the most recent global target to protect 30% of the natural planet by 2030 as part of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreed during COP15, there are several other global goals and targets. The Government of Bangladesh (GoB) has also pledged to restore 0.75 million hectares of forests as part of the Bonn Challenge. The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh contain almost one-third of the country’s state-owned forests and are home to 12 ethnic communities, whose livelihoods are dependent on forests. Although once rich in biodiversity, the majority of the forests in the region are highly degraded due to faulty management, complex institutional arrangements, and land disputes with locals. The CHT, therefore, represent the most promising region for ecosystem restoration through forest and landscape restoration (FLR). Here, using the secondary literature, we examine the current institutional arrangements and drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in the CHT region and potential benefits and modalities to make FLR successful in the region. Based on our study, we suggest that institutional reform is essential for successful FLR in the CHT. We also discuss key interventions that are necessary to halt ecosystem degradation and to secure community participation in natural resources management in the region.

Suggested Citation

  • Oliver Tirtho Sarkar & Sharif A. Mukul, 2024. "Challenges and Institutional Barriers to Forest and Landscape Restoration in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-18, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:13:y:2024:i:4:p:558-:d:1380175
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rasul, Golam & Thapa, Gopal B., 2006. "Financial and economic suitability of agroforestry as an alternative to shifting cultivation: The case of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 91(1-2), pages 29-50, November.
    2. Mukul, Sharif A. & Herbohn, John, 2016. "The impacts of shifting cultivation on secondary forests dynamics in tropics: A synthesis of the key findings and spatio temporal distribution of research," Environmental Science & Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(P1), pages 167-177.
    3. Lukas Giessen & Pradip Kumar Sarker & Md Saifur Rahman, 2016. "International and Domestic Sustainable Forest Management Policies: Distributive Effects on Power among State Agencies in Bangladesh," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-28, April.
    4. Masheli Chakma & Umer Hayat & Jinghui Meng & Mohammed A Hassan, 2023. "An Assessment of Landscape and Land Use/Cover Change and Its Implications for Sustainable Landscape Management in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-20, August.
    5. Niaz Ahmed Khan & Sudibya Kanti Khisa, 2000. "Sustainable land management with rubber-based agroforestry: a Bangladeshi example of uplands community development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 8(1), pages 1-10.
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