The Austrialian Government has handed over the management of forestry project to the Nepal government after its four decades of its investment in the sector.

The Australian government has made 6 phasewise investment in the ' Nepal Australia community Resource Management Project' (NACRMP) which was launched in Sindhupalchowk and Kavrepalanchowk district in 1962.

So far, 844 forest users' groups are involved in the forestry project started in 27 hectares of land of the two districts.

The Australian Government has spent 4 crore ( Australian dollar) for the project. Nepal is expected to earn as much as 1.12 billion rupees from the project if trees planted under this project is managed in a scientific manner.

The community forest project that was run for forty years with a view to developing such forest in sustainable manner, various programmes including forest management, tree plantation , participation of local people , market management of forest products, training programmes, improvement in education quality, capacity building of the forest users, economic reforms, technology transfer to second generation were organised.

The Australian government is set to provide assistance worth 6,50,000 Australian Dollar for the development of marketing skills of community forestry of Nepal through Micro-Enterprise Development Project (MEDEP) of United Nations for the coming fiscal year of 2006-7 AD

Source: Gorkhapatra