Facilitating multi-input Management Plan
Preparation of co-management plan was developed by IUCN taking into account resources, different user groups, traditional and formal governance arrangements and issues. A draft co-management plan was sent to stakeholders (Government and NGOs) for comments. These were further consolidated and brought to the village for consultation. IUCN handed over the final co-management plan to the Department of Environment which was taking over the lead and presented the plan one final time to the community (5).
- Mandate for relevant authorities to develop a legal arrangement to provide a legal protection for the island and the surrounding intertidal areas. - Clear intend of handing over the process to the national regulatory body (to handle the processes after the drafting of the co-management plan. This gives the Government ownership of the process while ensuring a strong relationship between landowners and Government to ease the implementation steps.
Divisions within the village had caused strained relations amongst certain villagers. However, by following traditional protocols and the proper channels with which to enter and conduct consultations in the village, the team managed to work in the village without hindrance. Different stakeholders will have different interests in the process. It is important to find a common objective that all stakeholders are interested in, this could ultimately speed up the achievement of the desired objective. In our case it was the Ramsar process (Department of Environment (DoE) who are the secretariat of the Ramsar process in Fiji.) Having Nasoata nominated as a Ramsar site also involved other important stakeholders/implementing NGO partners such as Department of Forestry, University of the South Pacific, WWF, etc. The Ramsar designation would also assist in achieving the objectives of the co-management plan.