Livelihood resilience of forest-dependent farmers amidst the covid-19 pandemic in Sikka, Indonesia

The capacity of forest farmers is one of the factors affecting community forest (CF) management in Indonesia. We took Tuartana CF in Sikka District, Eastern Indonesia, as a representation of a marginal semi-arid region lens to understand the dynamics and impact of assistance on farmer capacity building in forest management. The study aimed to understand the role of CF facilitation in social, economic, and ecological aspects, as well as the implications of resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research was conducted through structured, in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions (FGD) with forest farmers. The data were qualitatively analyzed descriptively. The results showed that the CF farmers facilitation process encourages increased forest farmers’ interactions in supporting sustainable forest resources. This is evidenced by the initiative of farmers to develop alternative sources of livelihood and build marketing networks with related institutions, including strengthening and institutionalizing forest farmer groups through increasing the intensity of coordination and cooperation networks as well as increasing knowledge and skill in diversifying forest products from CF. Capacity building improved farmers’ resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a number of variables and indicators evaluated in the management of CF. Learning from the facilitation process in increasing the capacity and resilience of forest farmers that have been built can be a reference for the parties to provide further assistance in building CF partnerships.