Is PES A Panacea To Poverty Reduction And Environmental Resources Conservation? A Case of Oyo State Rural Poor Farming Households Farm Settlers Perspectives

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VII, Issue XII, December 2020 | ISSN 2321–2705

Is PES A Panacea To Poverty Reduction And Environmental Resources Conservation? A Case of Oyo State Rural Poor Farming Households Farm Settlers Perspectives

  Adesiyan, O.I.
Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Abstract
This study examined the perspectives of poor farming household farm settlers on the necessity of Land ownership Rights (LOR) as a condition for the environmental resource conservation. Previous studies argued that without property rights the poor will not be willing to participate in the environmental resource conservation. In this regards, the study argues that a Credit-based Payment for Environmental Services (PES) has the potential to tackle rural poverty and agricultural land degradation simultaneously, without the poor having absolute ownership rights of the agricultural land. To this end a choice experiment is employed to design the multi-attributes of PES. Findings of this study revealed that PES is a viable mechanism for rural poverty reduction and agricultural land conservation. The study discovers that tenancy security of the land for the occupants is sufficient to attract the poor to participate in land conservation programs, and not the absolute land ownership rights as argued by previous literature.

Keywords: payment for environmental services, property rights, agricultural land degradation

1.0 Introduction

According to Derissen and Latacz-Lohmann (2011). Payment for environmental services (PES) is a market incentive mechanism for the provision of public goods within the field of environmental and resource issues. This definition can be more explicit, thus: Payment for environmental services (PES) is an incentive-based mechanism for sustainable resource conservation and management (i.e. it can be used for preservation, restoration, and creating new environmental services-conservation) as well as for poverty alleviation. There has been the need for a more vibrant resource conservation and management system. PES have been seen by many ecologists, environmental and development economists as a better option in the arena of environmental/ecological conservation (Hardner & Rice 2002; Ferraro & Kiss, 2002; Niesten &

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