Manejo Comunitario de Vicuñas en Perú Estudio de Caso del Manejo Comunitario de Vida Silvestre

This study forms part of IIED’s Evaluating Eden project which explores community-based wildlife management (CWM) through a comprehensive review of initiatives worldwide, the aim being to assess what CWM has achieved for wildlife and for people and to identify the social, political, economic and environmental factors that influence its efficacy. Vicuna management in Peru was chosen as a case study because of the moves to give Andean communities more rights over these wild animals and the Government initiatives to promote sustainable use. The study examines how CWM has worked out in practice. It considers whether communities have benefited and whether conservation of the vicuna has been improved. It also analyses the factors that influence the outcome, in particular the move to promote captive management. The findings suggest that community-based vicuna management could potentially have a significant social impact and be a means for promoting development at the local level. However, this potential is not being realised. Lack of significant benefits for community members translates into limited social impact and lack of interest. More important, the transfer of rights to communities has not been accompanied by institutional development and capacity building so that communities can play an effective role in management. The vicuna management programme could benefit from efforts at local level to strengthen community institutions and to broaden participation in decision-making.