Conservation of forest landscape in Mai Valley
Forest Landscape Conservation Project
Mai Valley Forest Landscape, an Important Bird
and Biodiversity Area (IBA) in the north-eastern part of Nepal, Ilam District
is known to habitat around 300 species of birds. The forest also homes globally
threatened and restricted range bird species like Rufous-throated Wren Babbler Spelaeornis
caudatus, Spiny Babbler Acanthoptila nipalensis, Hoary-throated
Barwing Sibia nipalensis, Asian Fairy Bluebird Irena puella,
Pale-headed Woodpecker Gecinulus granita and White-rumped Vulture Gyps
bengalensis. The assessment of the Mai Valley IBA reported intense
pressures from high dependency on forests and forest products, forest fire,
overgrazing and infrastructure development. This accelerator project funded by
BirdLife International thus, aims to work with local government and community
forest user groups in the landscape to benefit local communities through
alternative livelihood enhancement, mainly NTFPs (tea and cardamom) cultivation
and marketing. This project will also explore potentiality of entrepreneurship
development for women, indigenous people and marginalized groups present in the
landscape. Through this livelihood diversification, the project targets to
reduce the ongoing pressure on forest and forest resources. This project
ultimately would foster bird and biodiversity conservation through landscape
conservation.