Towards Community's Involvement In Integrated Management In Dinder Biosphere Reserve, Sudan

The research study is planned to address this problem by means of exploring the relationship between the local community and the natural resources in the study area. The main objective is to adopt a management approach following the biosphere reserve concept. The methodology used for the research included: 1) Social Survey: using questionnaires, P R A, and secondary data. 2) Inventory Survey: using survey lines extended 4.8 KM running from river bank to Dhahra and locating 12 sample plots (each 2 hectares) along each survey line for vegetation measurement. 3) Related Literature Review. According to the analysis of compiled data it is clear that local people in the study area completely rely on natural resources of the park. The distance covered for collection of wood increases yearly and now community members have to go 5-7 kilometers to collect the suitable trees for construction purposes .Also distance of 2-4 kilometers should be covered to collect fuel wood . Regarding the tree stocking in the study area it is clear that there is considerable variation between sector I (Near the villages ) which average about 4000 tree per sector compared to that far away (sector 3)which average about 6/000 trees per sector . Acacia seyal (97%), Balanite aegyptiaca (74.2%) and Compretum species (74.2%) are the most preferable trees to the community and they are highly consumed in the study area. Most of the settlers tend to rear animals mainly to support their food security and to guarantee diversification of diets .For wildlife, XVII the majority of respondent (81,8%) indicated the decreasing of the wildlife population mainly due to human activities (66.7%), and due to the same reason, 95.4% assure that the range land condition was much better in the past. Shifting cultivation is the only applicable method of cultivation adopted by the settlers (100%). 77.3% of the respondents stated that they follow crop rotation and no fallow period which means intensive cultivation method. Some high palatable grasses has been mentioned by respondents as declined or disappeared species and some new unpalatable species colonized the study area The main factor threatening the existence of the local communities are the lack of education (71.2%), lack of health services (50%) addition to lack of adequate drinking water (36,4%). However, settlement with it’s Negative impact in the study, area was became a reality and accordingly, the main recommendation of this study is the managing of the study area on participatory manner, to involve different stake holders with an immediate objective to revise the policy adopted now and to adopt an active and practiced community based natural resources management, in order to promote conservation of the park and sustainable use of the natural resources in the study area