Focus group discussions conducted in North Luangwa ecosystem

The researchers investigated three Game Management Areas (GMAs) surrounding the North Luangwa National Park (NLNP), namely: Mukungule, Munyamadzi, and Musalangu. Together, they form the North Luangwa Ecosystem. In the study area, a total of 20 focus group discussions were held involving participants from the local community, 8 in Munyamadzi, 6 in Musalangu and 6 in Mukungule. In each of the study systems, focus groups included at least three communities adjacent to the National Park and two communities in Musalangu and Mukungule adjacent to the towns of Chama and Mpika, respectively. This helped to unravel variations in equity perceptions based on spatial patterns that have an impact on the distribution of costs and benefits (Tumusiime & Sjaastad, 2014). Each focus group had between 7 and 12 participants, and separate focus groups were conducted according to their age and sex. The focus group members were identified through the village action group (VAG) chairpersons and the village leaders who were key respondents identified through snowball sampling. Each focus group participant came from a different VAG so that there was a wide representation of views from each chiefdom. The participants were also divided by age and sex to represent their different lived experiences. Participants were assigned anonymous identifiers (number codes). Data was reported and shared only in anonymized forms. The coding process included a categorization of governance stakeholders based on institutional affiliation as well as ability to influence or control the behaviour of others with respect to natural resource governance. Governance stakeholders were also categorized as formal or bureaucratic or socially embedded customary or traditional institutions. Traditional institutions can include chiefs, lineage leaders, vigilantes, religious fraternities, political factions and activists, hometown associations, and neighbourhood groups. - The coding also identified themes and narratives that occurred in interview transcripts and then linked them to dimensions of equity. Equity is a product of intersecting dimensions which include distribution, procedure, and recognition. Recognitional equity deals with respect for different identities as well as social and cultural differences, including gender. Distributive equity deals with equitable distribution of environmental goods and services as well as costs related to nature conservation while procedural equity seeks to establish participatory and inclusive decision-making processes that engender transparent and meaningful involvement of relevant actors in environmental affairs that concern them.