Main Mid Term Review Findings

Achievement of Project Development Objective

In terms of implementation , the mission noted that the progress of the Project is characterized by a substantial improvement of Project efficiency and acceleration in achieving targets for Communal Forest and Pasture management Plans (CFPMPs), Micro-Catchment Plans (MCPs) and Carbon Sequestration (CS). The Project is largely on track implementing the new Project implementation plan approved by the MOEFWA in November 2007.

The formalizing of forest and pasture transfer to local government units (LGUs) confirms that the Project Development Objective (PDO) remains high in the Government's agenda . As part of an ambitious plan of decentralization of governmental powers to LGUs, agreements for the transfer of ownership of forests and pastures have been signed by the Council of Ministers for 330 communes. It concludes a process which began in 1998 as a pilot for the transfer of usufruct rights to 30 communes, as part of the Albanian Forestry Project (AFP). However, this achievement significantly changes the project situation and a major aim of the project becomes building management capacities for sustainability at the local level.As result of transfer, there is an urgent need to adapt the institutional framework to be able to deliver adequate capacity building, extension service and control functions. This was an important aspect of project design which has become even more important when not only the usufruct, but also the ownership rights of land have been transferred.

Sustainability

The transfer of ownership and usufruct rights for forest and pasture management to the LGUs provides better incentives to manage and protect these resources, which are now closer to the people that use and protect them. The Decision of the Council of Ministers, No.22, date 9.1.2008, provides a framework to establish and maintain sustainable and community-based management of communal forests and pastures. LGUs and the communal forest and pasture associations (CFPUAs) have gained important skills and experience, which is a good base for their future work to improve management of the resources and increase their revenue potential. The participatory process has the added value of not only increasing ownership through the process of identifying boundaries and individual usufruct rights, but also exposing the community to ideas of sustainable management practices. Along with the transfer of pasture and forest lands to the communes, a new opportunity for sustainable use of pastures is opening up in the form of grazing fees. These fees were formerly collected by District Forest Service, but now, after the transfer is finalized, they will be collected by the communes. The mission believes that a well managed fee setting mechanism could be a way to provide a disincentive to overgraze certain areas and an incentive to graze underutilized areas.

Moreover, the income generated from the fees could be reinvested in pasture management and improvement of their quality. One of the stated reasons for Government's Decision to transfer forest and pasture to communes was to ensure better protection and management of these resources in general, and better fire control in particular. LGUs feel that fire management will be less of an issue now that the forest and pasture lands are transferred to communal ownership as the people, who are often setting the fires, will now see those lands as of their own and will therefore take better care to prevent wildfires. However, in order for the communes to take full advantage of the above opportunities and the project to be sustained after its closing, it is crucial that supporting structures for building management capacity are in place. This is closely related to a successful institutional reform for the control and management of forests and pastures. The transfer of state forests and pastures to communes requires a substantial reorganization of institutional functions and reallocation of resources. The logical continuation of the PMT and the DFPP after the closure of the project would be to become the central Directorate responsible for forest planning and extension to commune and private forests and pastures. Unless the required reform is completed within the project period, sustainable development of upland and mountainous erosion-proned areas now transferred to the communes may not be secured and maintained. Because government resources are limited and most likely will be inadequate to meet future demands, it is now the right moment to explore alternative sources of revenues which could contribute to the financial viability of LGU economies. There is a need to provide disadvantaged mountain regions with continuous structural support as is the case throughout the European Member States and in many other countries. Most of the communes will not be in a position to secure critical livelihood, environmental and other functions and to rebuild the forest and pasture resources in a way that they can provide a sustainable source of income for their inhabitants. Albanian forest and pasture resources produce a multitude of environmental services such as erosion control, stabilization of water supply and improvement of water quality, and enhancement of national and global biodiversity, as well as providing the foundation for a vibrant cultural and environmental tourism. In many countries, such as Mexico , Costa Rica , and Panama , payments for environmental services (PES) have already become a viable additional source of income and have helped to improve land use and reduce environmental problems. The mission therefore believes that PES would have a great potential in Albania and suggests exploring its development for certain watersheds or the country as a whole. One example with an obvious potential would be Fierza commune where payments in collaboration with Albanian energy corporation KESH and the General Roads Directorate to protect forests against erosion on steep slopes would largely offset the costs for structural protection of the road and lake. For this, the Mission recommends the carrying out of the needed analytical work, with support of an internationally recruited specialist, who could help develop a better understanding of the PES mechanism for the Albanian situation, based on in the experiences of Mexico and Costa Rica .