ISSUES, CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS OF COLLABORATIVE MANAGEMENT OF PROTECTED AREAS: A CASE OF INTRODUCING PEOPLES PARTICIPATION IN THE MANAGEMENT OF MT. ELGON NATIONAL PARK

This paper addresses one of the most challenging issues in protected area management in modern times, that is, people's participation. It attempts to highlight issues, challenges and, to a limited extent, prospects of collaborative management using the case of Mt. Elgon National Park in Eastern Uganda. To give a clear picture of challenges and issues the paper presents collaborative management in the context of rural development and then provides information on the historical background of the National park. Much of the information on activities of the park was collected during a field work study in the Mt. Elgon Region in July 1997.