Institutional development for sustainable rangeland resource and ecosystem
management in mountainous areas of northern Nepal
a b s t r a c t
Rangelands represent one of the most important natural resources in mountainous regions of northern
Nepal. However, a poor understanding of the social dimensions of rangeland use has limited their proper
management and sustainable development, which represent major challenges for Nepal’s resource
managers. Institutional development is thought to be a viable solution to this problem and may ultimately
lead to improved rangeland management in Nepal. Based on this hypothesis, a study was conduced
in the Rasuwa district of northern Nepal to examine the effectiveness of institutional development
at the local and national levels in mitigating the problems facing sustainable rangeland management by
using an institutional analysis and development (IAD) framework. The information and data were mainly
collected from different stakeholders, farmers, professionals and practitioners using a toolkit of participatory
rural appraisal (PRA), workshops and literature review. It can be concluded from this case study
that a number of institutional development efforts are needed to promote sustainable rangeland management
in this region. First, local herders represent a repository of rich indigenous knowledge essential
to sustaining sound rangeland management practices; hence, indigenous practices need to be integrated
into modern technologies. Second, public services and technical support are currently unavailable or
inaccessible to local herders; hence, research, development and extension interventions need to be
initiated for marginalized pastoral communities. Third, rangeland institutions are incomplete and illorganized,
so institutional development of various organizations is necessary for promoting sustainable
rangeland management. Fourth, the policies and governance necessary for promoting rangeland management
are not well-designed; hence, governance reform and policy development need to be formulated
through internal and external agencies and organizations.