Traditional or indigenous forest management systems has a long history in Nepal, particularly in the hills. These systems were operational under different types of institutional arrangements at different times and locations.

• Talukdar: During the period when Nepal was ruled by the Ranas, many hill forests were under the responsibility of talukdars.
• Kipat: Kipat was another form of land tenure in which land was regarded as the common property of the local ethnic group and was managed from within the ethnic group’s organisation. The kiratis of the eastern hills region were the biggest kipat-owning community in Nepal. Under the kipat system, the whole land, irrespective of its use, was owned by the community. Individuals who cultivated lands in their capacity as members of kipat-owning ethnic groups owed allegiance primarily to the community, not to the state. Thus the whole land, including forests, was being managed for the benefit of the local community. This form of ownership persists in the local system of forest management by the Sherpa community of Khumbu region and in the Jirel community of Jiri.

Some of the rules adopted by these indigenous systems of forest management included (i) only harvesting selected products and species, (ii) harvesting according to the condition of the product, (iii) limiting the amount of product, and (iv) using social means of monitoring.

Some forms of indigenous systems continue to exist in many places despite a general belief that the nationalisation of forests in 1957 destroyed these systems and forests under indigenous management are usually of higher quality compared to other forests in the same area. The continuous survival of indigenous forest management systems in many locations despite the nationalisation of forests in 1957 was probably because of informal cooperation between communities and local officials that allowed successful forest conservation practices to continue against the national policy.

External Resources:

• A review of forest policies, institutions, and changes in the resource condition in Nepal (PDF)
• Indigenous forest management systems in the hills of Nepal