Incorporating collaboration and motivation for effective management of protected areas in Nigeria

Abstract

Protected areas are areas of high ecological diversity, often associated with environmental, social and economic benefits at both local and global scales. To date, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) framework has been applied to manage protected areas. In Nigeria, there are over a thousand protected areas. However, most of these areas are continuously managed without considering the aspect of local communities, which result in ineffective management. Poorly motivated managers/rangers of protected areas have also affected the quality of management. Therefore, the research is aimed at extending the IUCN framework for protected area management by collaborating with the local communities and enhancing the role of managers. Using mixed method research design, questionnaires were administered to 191 managers/rangers from 3 protected areas namely Yankari, Lame-Burra and Sumu; 300 respondents from six communities located close to the protected areas; interview with 5 key informants; and field observation. Structural Equation Modelling was used in analysing data collected from managers/rangers; while differences in viewpoint of the communities were determined using Chi-Square. The overall perception of managers/rangers of the protected areas indicate that, collaboration has direct and significant influence, while motivation has direct but insignificant influence on protected area management. Communities that benefited from the establishment of the protected areas tend to have more interest in the management of the protected areas, and willing to accept management responsibilities. Based on the identified variables, the research developed a model for effective management of protected areas, and a framework within which local communities can be incorporated in management of the protected areas. The research further recommends the use of this empirical evidence by decision-makers in re-aligning management policies, and implementation of management programmes.