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Use
of Sustainable Livelihoods Approaches
Sustainable livelihoods is one of the underpinning principles of the programmes
which seek solutions to poverty with environmental sustainability; and in ways
which preserve the character of this important ecological resource. The Tonle
Sap is a freshwater lake in Cambodia which increases its land coverage by around
five times during each rainy season, creating a unique hydrological cycle with
high biodiversity.
As
a strategic principle, understanding of livelihoods and asset scenarios
informs the Tonle Sap work. A recent publication notes that human capital assets
are still affected by the extermination of a generation of leaders; social capital
has been severely diminished; and natural capital – forests and fish - is
under growing human (commercial) exploitation. In
2004, the ADB and the Ministry of Rural Development collaborated on a specific
Tonle Sap Sustainable Livelihoods Project to sustain and improve livelihoods within
the flooded areas of the Tonle Sap. This featured an approach that focused on
building on assets identified by the communities themselves,
and was conducted using an Appreciative-Inquiry based version
of Participatory Rural Appraisal. The approach yielded new ideas for direct and
indirect support to asset accumulation that could increase the effectiveness of
development assistance. Entry points for sustainable livelihoods were identified
as:
• Establishing village development funds;
• Strengthening community-based
management of natural resources;
• Improving agro-economic practices
and small-scale irrigation;
• Developing post-school literacy for women;
• Supporting self-help groups. However,
many other livelihoods-oriented activities are being addressed under other projects
of the extensive and integrated Tonle Sap Initiative, such as Tonle Sap Environmental
Management; Improving the Regulatory and Management Framework for Inland Fisheries;
Capacity Building of the Inland Fisheries Research and Development Institute;
Establishment of the Tonle Sap Basin Management Organization; Developing and Testing
Methodologies and Tools for Environmental Education and Awareness; and Capacity
Building for the Tonle Sap Poverty Reduction Initiative.
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