Customary laws : governing natural resource management in the Northern Areas

Customary laws, established by communal practice and usage for generations and passed down through oral tradition, are familiar, effective and continue to be practiced to a greater or lesser extent throughout the Northern Areas. And yet few of them have been documented so far. The objective of this survey and analysis was to draw out and understand the issues at the interface of customary laws governing the use and management of natural resources in the Northern Areas and statutory laws applied for the same purpose. The results of this study demonstrate that customary law in the Northern Areas is a sophisticated system with many of the same mechanisms – permits, user fees, administrative and criminal penalties for unauthorized use – and institutions – including rangers or wardens and judges – that characterize statutory regimes. There are many opportunities for reforming statutory laws governing natural resources in the Northern Areas to converge with elements of customary law, thus adding greater legitimacy and efficacy to the State’s efforts towards conservation of natural resources in the region.