Abstract

Developing countries must adjust wildlife conservation policies within a changing social context and emerging economic demand. Nepal has achieved success in wildlife conservation through the establishment of a protected area network and the support of local people; however, trade-offs between conservation and development continue to be debated. In this article, we evaluated the developmental history of wildlife conservation policy in Nepal using the policy arrangement approach. Based on a policy analysis and literature review, we explored wildlife conservation policy from the dimensions of actors, discourses, rules, and resources. Conservation history of Nepal has shown discursive shifts and actor coalitions in policy arrangement, resulting in a policy transformation from restrictive conservation to participatory conservation. Through our analysis, we found that future policies should consider the development demand of the country and focus on sustainable financing for wildlife conservation in order to achieve sustainable solutions.