Forest Management Plan for Implementation of a Pilot REDD+ Project for Masito Community Forest Reserve, Kigoma, Tanzania for 2012-2017: General Description

A forest management plan is a document that guides management of a formally managed forest. The general description is a component of a forest management plan, which describes the target forest and the focal landscape in socioeconomic and ecological terms. This paper gives a general description as part of a forest management plan for implementation of a pilot REDD+ project for Masito Community Forest Reserve, Kigoma, Tanzania for 2012-2017. The methodology used to obtain the data and information for the description was literature review. The general description is given under six main sections, namely: (1) legal status, ownership and administration; (2) location, size and boundaries; (3) physical features; (4) biological aspects; (5) buffer zones and corridors, and; (6) socio-economic aspects of adjacent communities. The forest was not yet gazetted. The vegetation type was predominantly miombo woodlands. The main land use of the forest adjacent communities was agriculture. The general description formed the basis for development of the other components of the management plan.