Context: Kweneng District, situated within the heart of Botswana, represents a region of notable ecological diversity and cultural significance. Despite its distinct attributes, Kweneng grapples with a complex spectrum of environmental challenges, with a particularly urgent concern surrounding land degradation and unsustainable forest utilization especially harvest of wild fruits. These environmental issues require immediate attention and comprehensive intervention to safeguard the district's ecological equilibrium, resilience to climate change, and the socio-economic well-being of its communities. In particular, the concern is the conservation and preservation of the Thotayamarula forest which is 192 hectares located in Matsheng Community villages namely, Lephepe, Boatlename, Sojwe, Shadishadi and Loologane, approximately 100-120 Kilometers North of Molepolole, and the villages fall within the Molepolole/Lentsweletau Administrative Authority. A community-based trust called Matsheng Community Development Trust (MCDT) set up in 2006 has plans to produce Marula cooking Oil and various other by products from Marula fruits to be harvested from the forest and to be processed in Shadishadi village where the processing factory has been put up. Humana People to People Botswana will provide managerial, oversight and technical support to a team of 10 people constituting the MCDT Board of Trustees drawn from the five villages. 100 people, 20 per village, will receive capacity training to work and run the factory. Over 1,500 people (women, men and youths inclusive) from the community will benefit from the operations of the factory in terms of employment creation such as collecting morula fruits, working at the marula tree nursery replication center, and planting and caring for morula fruit trees in the forest.
Environmental Challenges: A prominent challenge within Kweneng is the pervasive issue of land degradation, driven by irregular rainfall patterns and unsustainable land management practices, including agricultural practices, deforestation, and sand and gravel harvesting. The consequential impacts extend beyond agriculture, affecting river and dam sedimentation. Widespread deforestation, predominantly prompted by the demand for firewood and land clearance for agriculture and settlements, has resulted in a pronounced loss of critical vegetation cover. This, in turn, heightens the district's susceptibility to soil erosion. In addition, the Matsheng Community Development Trust that has set up a marula value chain center (cooking oil and other by-products) in the area, has the potential of creating a risk of over-exploitation of Marula trees, which might not be replanted and/or replicated thereby threatening extinction of the Marula Forest. Additionally, the high demand for livestock grazing, predominantly for cattle, has precipitated overgrazing, thereby compromising the integrity of the land through soil compaction and vegetation depletion. As climate change increasingly manifests in the form of rising temperatures and erratic rainfall, Kweneng District contends with the amplified challenges of a changing climate, particularly prolonged droughts that strain land and water resources, and that further contribute to land degradation and depletion of forest reserves.
Key drivers of land degradation in the district include the expansion of agricultural activities, spurred by population growth and the need for food security, as well as land clearance for urbanization and infrastructure development. The simultaneous pressures of unsustainable farming practices and land clearing have accelerated soil erosion and deforestation, exacerbating environmental issues in Kweneng. Furthermore, the region's deep economic ties to cattle rearing, while vital to its economy, demand extensive grazing areas, often surpassing the land's carrying capacity. Having assessed the MCDT plans to have a value chain production of Marula products, an unsustainable community dependency on the morula fruits for the production morula products is very likely to happen as the morula oil production will use the fruits which are also the source for replication of marula trees. Addressing these challenges necessitates an encompassing approach that mitigates the adverse effects of land degradation, promotes sustainable land management and forest conservation (SLM) practices, and preserves the socio-economic well-being of local communities while enhancing climate resilience.
Proposed Approach: In response to the above, this project takes a multi-faceted approach to tackle the issue of land degradation in Matsheng Community. It combines the strengthening of community-based conservation efforts and the introduction of SLM pilots and practices, as well as alternative income-generating activities (IGAs). These strategies are interwoven to mitigate environmental challenges while simultaneously improving food security, preserving threatened ecosystems and species. The project emphasizes the importance of sustainable land management practices and the responsible use of land resources to foster resilience against climate change and environmental degradation.
This project aligns closely with the GEF/SGP Country Programme Strategy OP7. It addresses strategic initiatives outlined for this phase, specifically focusing on: (i) Community-based conservation of threatened ecosystems and species: The project promotes community engagement in conservation efforts within the district, actively involving local communities and community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) committees in preserving the threatened ecosystems and species endemic to the region; and (ii) Sustainable agriculture and fisheries, and food security: The project's approach includes sustainable agricultural practices and agroforestry to enhance food security while simultaneously mitigating land degradation. This project represents a pivotal step toward achieving the strategic goals outlined in OP7 while addressing the pressing environmental challenges in Kweneng District, Botswana. It integrates conservation and sustainable agriculture to create a sustainable and resilient future for the district and its communities.