Member-level Livelihood Outcomes and Governance Pathways in Community Forest Enterprise (CFE) to Achieving Sustainability: Evidence from West Sumatra, Indonesia
Community Forest Enterprises and Sustainability
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66529/agripat.2026.2.3.94Keywords:
community forest enterprise, livelihood, triple bottom line, sustainabilityAbstract
Community Forest Enterprise (CFE) in Indonesia aims to improve livelihoods and support forest conservation, but member-level outcomes remain underexamined. This study examines member-level livelihood outcomes and governance pathways for CFE sustainability in West Sumatra, using a mixed-methods approach with 62 members across 10 CFEs. The results showed that among the 62 respondents across 10 CFEs, only 29% have half of their total income from CFE. While 41% of them are still receiving less than 25% of their total income. This suggests that the CFE's position is still in its early stages and that CFE is treated as a supplementary livelihood rather than a main one. Governance participation is high (87% meeting, 77% decision making), and members receive six non-cash benefits, such as job, facility, daily needs, knowledge, and market. Social-oriented CFEs provide more non-cash benefits, while business-oriented CFEs provide more economic benefits. Environmental engagement varies across categories (66% waste management, 67.7% replanting, and 43.5% forest monitoring), with social-oriented CFEs showing higher engagement than business-oriented ones. The study contributes a governance-capability pathway model and reframes Triple Bottom Line (TBL) as multi-value sustainability. Recommendations include inclusive governance and recognition of mixed orientations to improve the CFEs.
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