Traditional forest conservation culture have had largely synergetic
coexistence in developing countries like Africa (Barre 2009, Adom 2016,
Araia 2019, Israel and Wynberg 2019). These relationships are reinforced
through strong norms and institutions, mainly passed on orally from
generation to another. Traditional forest allocation, benefit-sharing,
and management practices are highly ingrained in the Sheka people’s
culture, structuring the community’s daily interaction with nature
(Woldemariam and Fetene 2007). Among the communities of the Sheka
people, knowledge and management practices of forest and how to deal
with nature are instilled.
The clan leader (Gebi tato) deals with decisions that need to be taken
regarding KOBO allocation and administration. The KOBO forest is well
protected and is never converted to other land uses and the owner of the
KOBO has a birthright to transfer the KOBO holding to the next
generation. The vast majority of research participants knew of oral
stories and legends told by their ancestors pertaining to the forest.
This illustrates a high level of integration of the KOBO forest into
traditional Sheka culture. Through oral stories, tells of the KOBO
forest, stories of accomplishments or encounters with KOBO forest. Using
folk stories, the elders pass the knowledge to the young generation, a
key factor in maintaining connection to cultural practices and
traditions (Berkes et al., 2000).
There was an overwhelming acknowledgement of traditional forest
allocation, benefit-sharing, and management practices, with above 85%
of the respondents stating that they used the KOBO forest economic
purpose. Despite changes in religious beliefs and the expansion of
modern agricultural investment in the study area, the Sheka people
maintained strong connections with nature across many aspects of their
culture. In traditional societies with strong cultural reference to
forests, there is a relatively peaceful coexistence (Parrotta 2007,
Parrotta 2008, Berkes et al. 2000, and Soga 2020). While the Sheka
people may use forest for different household consumption, unwanted tree
cuts in the KOBO forest remain culturally unacceptable. To the contrary,
many other people across the world destruct forests for a variety of
purposes.
The economic benefits of forest products, such as honey has been
observed in Sheka people’s culture. For example, the KOBO forest is the
principal source of honey for the Sheka people. The Sheka traditional
forest conservation and management practice is not only used for
conservation of biodiversity but also serve for the production of
quality honey that creates a huge market demand within and outside the
Sheka zone. The Sheka people traditional forest conservation and
management practice there are forests that are used mainly for the
production of honey. The One-KOBO holder may have up to 120 beehives. In
addition to the production of honey, the KOBO forest is used for the
extraction of trees for house building and another household
consumption. The importance of the KOBO forest to the Sheka people is
directly related to cultural perception.
Even if the KOBO forest conservation and management culture have a
number of economic and ecological significance, they have no legal
grounds to protect this culture. The cultural importance of KOBO forest
allocation, benefit-sharing, and management practices could be
integrated into KOBO forest management and conservation approaches. This
study opens avenues for exploring justifications for conserving the KOBO
forest within Sheka forests. The people of Sheka could be enlisted in
law enforcement activities against KOBO forest destruction. Such
integrated conservation efforts with the Sheka people, who are
culturally attached to the KOBO forest, are promising tools to
effectively manage and conserve KOBO forest in increasingly
human-dominated landscapes.
Conclusion
The case study presented on KOBO culture demonstrates that the Sheka
people have their own indigenous knowledge, beliefs, and management
practices related to forest. This cultural and belief system is
inherited from their ancestor since time immemorial and evolving over
generation. The culture of KOBO described in this article shows that it
still exists in every element of local forest utilization, protection,
and management and allocation of forest. As the study clearly shows, the
KOBO culture is productive and efficient for forest management, and this
useful culture has demonstrated its significance in the protection of
various forest types and tree species, contributing to the conservation
of biodiversity. Thus, the KOBO forest conservation culture is
illustrated in the Sheka people forest utilization, protection, and
management provide important insights into the protection of various
forest types and tree species, contributing to the conservation of
biodiversity.