Evaluation of Community-Based Natural Resource Management Programmes in Nasarawa State, North Central Nigeria

Community-based natural resource management has emerged as a central paradigm in sub-Saharan African conservation and sustainable development programming, yet the evidence base for its effectiveness in Nigeria's Middle Belt remains thin. This study evaluates three community-based natural resource management programmes implemented in Nasarawa State between 2019 and 2024, assessing design quality, implementation fidelity, and measurable environmental and livelihood outcomes. Programme documentation, monitoring reports, and financial records were reviewed and triangulated with field assessments. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 programme staff, government counterparts, and donor representatives, and focus group discussions were held with 90 community participants across six communities. Satellite-derived vegetation cover and land use change data provided independent environmental outcome evidence. Findings indicate that all three programmes demonstrate genuine community participation in management decisions, but exhibit significant weaknesses in technical natural resource management support, monitoring and evaluation systems, and post-programme sustainability planning. Environmental outcomes as measured by vegetation recovery and land degradation reversal are modest, with only one programme demonstrating measurable landscape-scale impacts. Livelihood benefit distribution is uneven across community social categories, with women and landless households receiving fewer direct benefits. The study develops a contextualised evaluation scorecard for community-based natural resource management programmes in Nigeria's Middle Belt and recommends its adoption by Nasarawa State Ministry of Environment as a programme design and review tool. Keywords: community-based natural resource management, programme evaluation, Nasarawa State, conservation, livelihood outcomes.