commons southasia

8/8/2019 Commons SouthAsia

1/38

Governing the Commons in

South Asia :

Implications of the work by Elinor

Ostrom on resource governance in

the region


2/38

Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka

Outline

Elinor Ostrom:

Scholar

Nobel co-laureate for economics in 2009

Importance of the Contribution

Context,

Key concepts

Importance

Relevance and key implications

Implications for resource management in South

Asia


3/38


Elinor Ostrom : Scholar


4/38


Elinor Ostrom : Scholar (contd..)

Born in 07, August 1933

Ph. D in Political science from University of California, Los

Angeles (UCLA) in 1965

Arthur F. Bentley Professor of Political Science of Indiana

University ( served the faculty of IU since 1966)

Founding Director of Center for Institutional Diversity, Arizona

State University

Past President of American Political Science Association

Several awards for academic excellence often with thedistinction of being the first women to receive them


5/38


Elinor Ostrom : Scholar (contd..)

Areas of Research Interest

Broad fields: Economic governance, Organizationtheory, Theory of institutions, Public choice theory

Focus areas: Common property resources,Collective action, Community management ofresources, Diversity of Institutions

Objects of study: Watersheds, Fisheries, Irrigation

Systems, Forests, Grazing Lands

Undertook field studies in number of developingcountries in Asia and Africa


6/38


Nobel Co-laureate for Economics 2009

First women to behonored with theNobel Prize forEconomics - 2009

for her analysis ofeconomic

governance,especiallythe commons


7/38


Nobel Co-laureate for Economics 2009 (cont..)

Challenged the conventional wisdom that common property ispoorly managed and should be either regulated by centralauthorities or privatized

Based on numerous studies of user-managed fish stocks,pastures, woods, lakes, and groundwater basins, concludedthat the outcomes are, more often than not, better thanpredicted by standard theories

Provided evidence that common property can be successfullymanaged by user associations


8/38




9/38


Context of the Contribution

Issue of property rights has long been debated

over political ideologies:

Private property (capitalist view) vs. state/collective

property (Marxist view)

Strongly influenced the competing camps of

development thinkers

Collapse of Soviet bloc symbolized the triumph of

private property


10/38


Context of the Contribution (cont..)

Common property resources were largely

overlooked in the debate

Viewed as: Inherently inefficient

Vulnerable and declining

Backward

Tragedy of Commons Hardin, 1969


11/38



CPR School of Thought: Ostrom is one among otherpioneers

Among other pioneers: Robert Wade, Narpat Jodha, JeanMarie Baland, Jean Philip Platteau, Pranab Bardhan, DanielBromley, Arun Agrawal

Major Research Questions Addressed:

Why collective action is effective and sustainable in certainlocal resources where it failed in others

What factors ensure effective, sustainable cooperation oflocal communities for managing commons?


12/38



Regulatory Approach (state property)

Widely implemented Applications in fisheries, forestry, land,

water

Limited success

Private Property

High theoretical appeal Limited scope for practical

Co-Management

Sharing of responsibilitybetween State agencies and

community users

Common Property Resources

Tragedy of Commons- Hardin Every bodies property. Nobodies

property

Community Based ManagementSystems

Based on the observations intraditional systems - Ostrom (1991)and others

Invoke a legitimacy for non-privately


13/38


Key Concepts

Institutions

Govern the relationships and interactions among

individuals

Could be formal, informal or customary

Include laws, rules, norms, customs, hierarchies,

monitoring and sanctioning mechanisms


14/38


Key Concepts (cont..)

Property Rights

A Social Institution

Governed by broad operational rules

Rules on Access : Defines the

individuals/groups who are entitled to the flowof benefits from a resource

Rules on Use/Conservation : Set the limits to the

flow of benefits from the resource


15/38


Key Concepts (cont)

Broad regimes of property rights

Private property

State owned property (public property)

Common property

Open access


16/38


17/38


Key Concepts (cont)

Collective Action

Action taken by a group ( either directly

or on its behalf through an organization)

in pursuit of members perceived shared

interests


18/38


Key Concepts (cont)

Co-Management

Sharing the responsibility and authority of

managing resources among government

agencies and local community through

co-operative arrangements


19/38



Dialogue on CPR brought the depth, objectivityand relevance to the problem of property rights

debated over political ideologies

Recognized the legitimacy of rights and

aspirations of millions who have depended on

CPR for centuries

Idea was keenly taken by policy planners,

resource managers, community leaders,

development workers etc. rather than by political

activists


20/38


Importance of the Contribution (cont..)

Emphasized the ecological/environmental basisof human property relationships

Advocated the sustainable development rather thangrowth

Highlighted the importance of Natural capital &

Social capital for development.

Opened up the avenue for practical solutions

Communitybased natural resource management

Co-management arrangements

Community participation in resource management


21/38


Relevance and Key Implications


22/38



Commons are widespreadGlobal commons : Oceans, Atmosphere, Tropical bio-diversityLocal commons: Grazing lands, Watersheds, Irrigation

systems, Fisheries, Forests

Large masses are still dependent on

commons: Food security

livelihoods and income

Social equity and welfare

Poverty alleviation

Conservation of resources

Managing commons are fundamentallyimportant


23/38



CPR systems are facing the greatest testof their survival

Rapid increase in population

Commercialization of rural economies

Modernization of technology

Transformation of traditional living patterns

New demands over CPR

Invention of new uses over traditional CPR

Market, policy or technology driven changes

Challenge: Collapse or adapt?


24/38


Implications for resourcemanagement in South Asia


25/38


CPR : Situation in South Asia

SA houses nearly a quarter of world population

High incidence of poverty among large masses ofprimary producers

Heavy dependence natural resources withcommon ownership Grazing lands (livestock)

Arable dry lands (rain-fed shifting agriculture)

Village tanks/ponds (irrigation, freshwater fish)

Watersheds/groundwater aquifers (water supply)

Coastal fisheries

Local forests (fuel wood, food, medicines, timber, pasture)


26/38


CPR in South Asia: Examples

India : Commons in dry regions (Jodha, 1986 and2008) CPRs could cover up to 25% of village resources

On average 17%-23% household income comes from

local CPRS Share could be even higher in poorer households withlimited private assets

Near total dependence over certain products (e.g. fuelwood)

Village Republics (Wade, 1988) Village councils play a major role in collective action

Better cooperation in areas with high scarcity


27/38


28/38


CPR in South Asia: Examples (cont..)

Nepal : Village forests

Subsistence farmers rely heavily on local forests for

livelihood needs Fuel wood, fodder and grass, leaf litter, timber,

NTFP

Distribution of income from forests unequal amonghouseholds: Dependence of poor households is high

CFUG- Community Forestry User Groups


29/38


CPR in South Asia: Examples

Bangladesh : Haor eco systesms Bowl shape low-lying lands goes under water during

rainy season

Unique eco-system with conjunctives uses of wetland,

cropland and fallow land

Rainy season: water bodies for fisheries

Dry season: rice, livestock and fish

Numerous eco-systems services

Complex system of ownership rights: Community

managed, state owned (de-facto commons)


30/38


Change in CPR: Village Tanks in SL

Major forces of transformation

Long Term Growth of population: intensifies both land & water scarcity

Growth of market opportunities : (forward market contracts,

infrastructure and market centers, middlemen) Enhance the opportunity for cash crop cultivation

Technological innovations: (micro-irrigation; labor savingmachinery; chemical inputs)

Enhance the option for production intensification

Short run

Government incentives: (Input subsidies and price supports)

Re-defining the incentive structure


31/38


Change in CPR (cont..)

Response to the Land scarcity:

Fragmentation of paddy units; usually private

ownership Productivity effects Income effect

Expanding the paddy area: Akkarawela; Conversion ofsupportive water storage units (Wew kotu) ?

Encroachment of state owned highland areas Practically all forest lands have been cleared unless declared

as reserves

Decline of shifting agriculture: permanent farm lands

Subsistence to commercial


32/38


Change in CPR (cont..)

Response to the Water scarcity:

Intensification of highland rain-fed agriculture during

Maha Contract farming option; very popular for maize, soy

High input intensive farming of hybrid varieties

Large mono-crop cultivations in nearly all available lands

Highland cash crop farming under agro-wells

Usually in Yala. (In some areas, from January) High cost of water supply. Only cash crops are grown

High disease incidence and price uncertainty

Expansion of market opportunities and technological

innovations highly facilitate this trend


33/38


Implications for Managing Commons

Resource management policies in South Asiancountries has generally been biased towardscommand & control approaches

Resources are mostly owned and managed by thegovernments: Sometimes influenced by colonialpolicies

Resulted in degradation of resources Poor governance

Neglect of community rights and welfare

Resource use conflicts

Physical degradation of resources

I li ti f M i C


34/38



(cont..)

Influence of community management school,however, fast being felt in policy circles

Significant attempts to incorporate new ideas:

Attempts to accommodate community needs

Recognizing community rights for resources

Facilitating collective action in existing commons

Community participation in resource management

State-Community partnerships: Co-management

I li ti f M i C


35/38



(cont..)

Some examples Forest resources: Community Forestry in Nepal

Joint Forest Management in India

Community Forestry in Sri Lanka

Fisheries:

Co-management in selected coastal and inlandfisheries in Sri Lanka

Co-management of fisheries in Bangladesh

Irrigation:

Irrigation management transfer in Sri Lanka

I li ti f M i C


36/38



(cont..)

Insights from CPR school has been incorporatedin many areas of resource management policies

and activities

Despite traditional bias to command & controlapproach, slow yet steady progress could be

observed in favor of community interests

Even the donor community has welcome the trend

and facilitated the process

I li ti f M i C


37/38



(cont..)

So far exposure and influence is restricted toclassical commons

There are other potential areas to be explored.

Joint adaptation to climate change

Common rights for intellectual property

Open Source/Shareware Indigenous knowledge


38/38


Thank You

www.ips.lk

commons southasia

Documents