Collaborative Conservation Through Policy Enforcement in Old Oyo National Park, Nigeria

Nature share neighborhood with locals, who are the original custodians of it. Escalating human population with resultant limitless need for limited, renewable but depletable resource necessitate introduction of restrictions to use. Does constraint guarantee cooperation for conservation? This has prompted need for this research- assessing enforcement as a tool to influence rurals’ compliance to park protection and vis versa, taking OONP, a park with historic and cultural relics in Nigeria, as a case study. Two sets of questionnaire were administered to park managers (PM) and Support Zone Communities (SZCs) assisted with in-depth interview in each of the six ranges of the park. Secondary data augments survey from records obtained from park head office. A total of 70 PMs was surveyed purposively at the Park headquarters and at the six ranges. From a sampling frame of 30%, a total of 40 villages was randomly and unevenly pooled from all six range stations depending on number of villages per range. Five households were randomly selected from each village and the household heads were purposively sampled. Park’s underemployment lags enforcement and bars resource protection. People evade prosecution, resist arrest and show minute support for conservation. Enforcement has not been sufficient to curb resource exploitation. Alternative measures gain peoples’ cooperation for conservation more. Adequate staffing cum updated prosecution terms will ensure effective patrol and deter offenders. Leniency of enforcement and empowerment will aid inclusion and cooperation of people for conservation in the face of 21st century challenges.