Project Detail

Capacity Building of Local Jakun Communities at Tanjung Keruing in the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Herbal Plants and Practise of Sustainable Livelihoods

- Due to deforestation the Orang asli cannot rely on the food resources of the forest fo their existence.
-With decreasing forest areas, coupled with commercial demend for herbal palnt, the OA have littele alternative but to overharvest to get sufficient income to feed their stomachs.
- In mid 2004, 20 acres of th OA land was taken by the neighbouring community to plant rubber trees which lead to further depletion of the forest causing the OA to be further impoverished.
-As such some plants cannot be found in their area and they have to go further to the neighbouring forest areas to look for such plants.
- As a result of such competitive harvestingsome of the herbal plantsare in danger of becoming extinct. Even before the plants mature or are able to replenish at the same rate of harvesting , the plants are harvested to meet the demands of the middlemen.
- Finally the depletion of such herbal plants will also result in the younger OA generation losing their traditional knowledge.

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Project Snapshot

Grantee:

Foundation for Community Studies and Development

Country:

Malaysia

Area Of Work:

Biodiversity

Operational Phase:

Phase 2

Grant Amount:

US$ 50,000.00

Co-Financing Cash:

US$ 101,807.00

Co-Financing in-Kind:

US$ 7,639.00

Project Number:

MAL/04/FP-13/48

Start Date:

8/2004

End Date:

1/2007

Status:

Satisfactorily Completed

Photo Gallery

Local IP of the Jakun community awaiting the arrival of guests during the Handover ceremony

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Project Characteristics and Results

Capacity - Building Component

A number of selected external consultants (eg. Foresters, plant scientist, handicraft trainers) would be used to build the capacity of the local Jakun community to conserve and sustainably use the herbal plants and also to undertake alternative income generating activities.

Project sustainability

Although the completed project has been formally handed over to the local Jakun community, members of FOCUSED as well as the resource people involved continue to visit, check and intervene if necessary to ensure the project's sustainability. As alternative income generation continues to grow, it is much more likely that the project on medicinal herbs and plants would be sustainable.

Significant Participation of Indigenous Peoples

As mentioned earlier, the project site at Tg. Keruing is fully comprised of local indigenous people of the Jakun community who will be actively involved in participating in all the components of the project.

Inovative Financial Mechanisms

Besides funding from SGP for the GEFable components of the project (eg. the conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plant and herbs and alternative income generation), several other components to better the living conditions (eg. construction of the community hall, provision of bus to transport the children to school, drinking water, sanitation, electricity and other infrastructure) of the indigenous people of the Jakun community were supported by various embassies (Japanese, German, Swiss, Canadian, New Zealand) and also the government (Dept of Indigenous People).

Planning gef grant

FOCUSED is scoping neighbouring communities to see if they would like to be collectively involved in upscaling and mainstreaming the project over a much larger geographical area, possibly with support in the form of a medium sized GEF grant.

Policy Impact

It is hoped that the success of the project at Tg. Keruing could be replicated in other villages of indigenous peoples, with the possible likelihood of influencing policy changes that would benefit the welfare of the indigenous people.

Gender Focus

The local community of Tg. Keruing includes indigenous people of both men and women, with decisions often made jointly after consultations. Further, the men would most likely be invoved in the much more labor intensive activities (eg. transplanting and intercropping), while the women in the less labor intensive activities (eg. handicraft and managing the nursery).

Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods

The local indigenous community at Tg. Keruing used to be primarily hunters and gatherers, with their livelihoods largely dependent on the surrounding forest. With the repeated logging, clearance and encroachment of the forest, the local indigenous people were unable to maintain their livelihoods, with over 50% of them living below the level of poverty line and with many of them classified as hardcore poor. Hence the local indigenous community was left with no other option but to over-exploit and over-harvest the natural resource, including the herbal plants. As such, the project aim not only to conserve and sustainably use herbal plants but also to facilitate new sources of income generation.

Notable Community Participation

The proposed project is at Kg. Tanjung Keruing, Pahang, which comprises some 104 people from 23 families belonging to the local community of "Jakun" indigenous people. All the components of the project relating to the conservation and sustainble use of herbal plants and sustainable livelihoods were to be undertaken by the local community of indigenous people themselves.

Promoting Public Awareness of Global Environment

The proposed project would aim to promote public awareness of the global environment by; 1. Training and capacity building workshops, 2. Production of a booklet on Medicinal Plants of Tanjung Keruing, 3. Production and dissemination of a CD rom on the project.

Project Results

The results of the project implemented by FOCUSED among the local indigenous people of the Jakun community include the following;
1.The conservation and sustainable use of medicinal herbal plants, even up to a commercial scale.
2.The planting of petai and rubber trees (with intercropping) by 23 families as a source of alternative income generation.
3.The setting up and nurturing of a nursery for the medicinal herbal plants, petai and rubber seedlings, along with a generator and sprinkler system.
4.Preparation and use of guidelines on best practices to document and conserve traditional knowledge.
5.Production of a booklet on the various medicinal herbal plants found in Tg. Keruing.
6.Production of a CD video on the GEF SGP project component involving the conservation and sustainable use of medicinal herbs and plants.
7.The setting up and using a training center for capacity building.
8.Establishing and maintaining a fish pond both for their own consumption and also as a source of alternative income generation when marketed.
9.Building the capacity and enabling the local indigenous people of the Jakun community to acquire the necessary skills for working together with a much better understanding of their environment and natural resources, particularly with regards to its state development policies.

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