Factors Influencing Gender Participation in the Exploitation and Management of Forest Resources in the Protected Areas of Cross River National Park Enclave Communities, Nigeria

Abstract

This study was designed to assess factors/constrains to gender participation in the management of forest resources within the protected areas of the Cross River National Park enclave communities. The quantitative research design was adopted for the study. A null hypothesis of no factors/constrains to gender participation in the management of forest resources was formulated. 638 respondents were sampled from a population of about 4249 people living within the six enclave communities of Okwangwo, Okwa 1 and 2, Mkpot, Abung and Iku all within Boki and Akamkpa local government areas of Cross River State, which houses the two park division of Okwangwo and Oban respectively. The selection of sample was done using a mathematical model where 15% of the total population was sampled for the study.  The instrument for data collection was a well structured questionnaire divided into two sections with four point likert scale response options. Data collected using the instrument was coded and transformed into SPSS version 16 and analyzed using the multiple regressions analysis. Ten factors were suggested are being responsible for gender participation in the management of forest resources. These factors include:  Sex, age, marital status, educational status, cultural factors, religion, household income, occupational status, household heads and property rights. The result of the regression analysis shows a yielded coefficient of regression correlation (R) of .351 and a multiple regression R-square (R²) of .123, and adjusted R² of .109, at .01 significant level, the result is significant, the result also shows that an analysis of variance (ANOVA) of the multiple regressions produced an F-ratio of 8.817, while the f-critical value is 1.91 (2-tailed), since the calculated F-value of 8.817 is greater than the critical F-value of 1.91, at .05 significant level, (2-tailed), the result is also significant at 0.05 level. The standardized regression beta weight ranged from -.021 to -3.980, the beta weight of four factors (sex, -3.980, marital status, -2.056, educational status,-3.111 and occupational status, -2.618) were significant at 0.05 level of significance, while the other six factors (age, .462, cultural factors, .395, religion, 1.052, household income, -.123, household heads, -.021 and property rights, -.660) were not significant at 0.05 significant level, meaning that they might not necessarily contribute to gender participation in forest resources management. It was therefore recommended that women in every society should be given free hands to participate in management activities and all cultural and social barriers acting as hindrance to gender participation in management activities should be removed to allow women contribute their ideas in situation and decisions that may affect them most.

Keywords: gender participation, forest management, enclave communities, cross river national park, gender equality and ecofeminism