Promoting sustainable farm forestry in Central America: Understanding the constraints and opportunities faced by farm families

On farm tree planting systems have been promoted through research and extension programs in Central America since the early 1980's. Several of these efforts were evaluated to determine the constraints that limit, and the opportunities which tend to favor, adoption and the sustainability of farm forestry activities. An analysis of the constraints and opportunities and the extent to which extension mechanisms responded to them was carried out. The evaluation employed a framework based upon factors acting at the farm level (resource availability, knowledge, motivation), conditioning factors, controlled externally (political/institutional, economic, biophysical, and socio-cultural factors), and their interaction. The evaluation specifically addressed: (a) the costs and benefits of tree planting to farm families; (b) the effectiveness of extension mechanisms used; (c) the factors influencing the sustainability of tree planting efforts; and (d) policy implications. The analysis showed that on farm tree planting systems have the potential for generating attractive financial benefits as well as providing for subsistence needs of rural families in the region. The ability to generate financial benefits was dependent upon local conditions (constraints and opportunities) with local scarcity and markets being important factors. Extension mechanisms that were judged to be most effective were providing inputs (ex. seedlings as direct subsidies or through community nursery programs) combined with technical assistance. Those mechanisms allow farm families to start with small numbers of trees, expanding their plantings as they become familiar with the benefits and management of the tree species. Sustainability was related to: (a) the level of participation of communities and institutions and institutional interest in promoted activities; (b) the level of benefits received by local populations from tree plantings; (c) continuity of support after project completion; and (d) in certain cases, how well projects dealt with permit requirements and were able to address policy issues. Policy changes that could improve the potential for sustainable farm forestry include an explicit recognition of benefits of farm forestry in policy making, and revamping the regulatory framework to act as an incentive rather than as an obstacle to on-farm tree planting.