Review Article

Factors Affecting the Success of Conserving Biodiversity in National Parks: A Review of Case Studies from Africa

Table 3

The number of publications in which the subfactors associated with the creation and management of the park were reported.

SubfactorsNumber and percentage of publications reporting the factor to be responsible for successNumber and percentage of publications reporting the factor to be responsible for failure

Subfactors responsible for success and failure in different contexts
 The creation of the park led to displacement of local people from the land they occupied.2 (1.6%)35 (28.5%)
 The local people neighbouring the park were restricted from accessing resources in the park.20 (16.3%)48 (39.0%)
 The local people who initially obtained resources in the area were not adequately compensated for no longer accessing resources in the park.39 (31.7%)39 (31.7%)
Subfactors responsible only for success
 The park administration had conflict resolution mechanisms and implemented them in case of any conflict.11 (8.9%)0
 The park’s administration possessed documents for legal establishment of the park.4 (3.3%)0
 The park’s administration gave harsh punishments to people who contravened park rules.13 (10.6%)0
 The park’s administration provided education, awareness, and outreach programmes to local communities neighbouring the park.26 (21.1%)0
 The management of the park was effected through the leadership structures of the local community.20 (16.3%)0
 The park had a monitoring and evaluation system.15 (12.2%)0
Subfactors responsible only for failure
 The local people neighbouring the park were asked to pay fees to access resources in the park.017 (13.8%)
 The local people neighbouring the park were not consulted before the park was created.058 (47.2%)
 A feasibility study to account for the local context was not conducted before creating the park.012 (9.8%)
 The park administration did not give the promised incentives to local people in the case of community-based conservation approach.05 (4.1%)
 The park was created in an area with high biodiversity and not degraded.010 (8.1%)
 The creation of the park did not take into account the past and current human ecology of the area.013 (10.6%)
 There were no clear communication channels between park staff and leaders at the local and national level.020 (16.3%)
 The policies governing the park were not enforced.012 (9.8%)
 The park staff were not skilled and were paid a low salary.025 (20.3%)
 Previous initiatives to conserve biodiversity in the park had failed.06 (4.9%)
 The park had been newly created.09 (7.3%)