Local Governance Institutions, CBNRM, and Benefit-sharing Systems in Namibian Conservancies

The provision of socio-economic benefits to community members is a key component in the design and implementation of community based natural resources management (CBNRM) initiatives in rural areas. Namibian CBNRM legislation requires that the local governance systems develop a benefit sharing plan (MET, 1995). Local governance systems that are developed within CBNRM programs determine the types and amounts of benefits that community members receive. This paper investigates the role of local governance in establishing benefit-sharing mechanisms and whether local governance facilitates or impedes the equitable distribution of benefits. We also examine whether community characteristics often highlighted in community based conservation literature as facilitating decision making in CBNRM (i.e., size of community, level of community homogeneity, and existence of shared norms) contribute to better local governance for benefit sharing. We use two case studies in Namibia to examine local governance and benefit sharing (Uibasen conservancy in Kunene region and Mayuni conservancy in Caprivi region). We draw on qualitative data from in-depth interviews with conservancy residents conducted in 2011. The findings of the study suggest local governance institutions in conservancies have not developed adequate benefit-sharing systems, and the expectations of conservancy members are largely based on speculation about what they should receive stemming from unclear guidelines regarding realistically deliverable benefits. We find that community characteristics have little impact on local governance outcomes with regards to benefit-sharing systems. This suggests that local governance structures need more external support and oversight in designing and implementing methods for distributing benefits to community members. We argue that fairness and equitable sharing of benefits can only be achieved when it is an explicit objective of the benefit-sharing systems used by local governance structures and involves transparency.