**5.1 Protected area management strategies**

Protected areas are "areas especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity and associated cultural resources, which are managed through legal or other effective means, designated or regulated and managed to achieve specific conservation objectives" [12, 13]. PAs have long been considered as the cornerstone of all national and regional conservation strategies. While it is often argued that they are the most effective and widespread measure for conserving forests and biodiversity [13, 14], the importance of complementary off-reserve management has also been acknowledged [15–17]. Globally, the number of PAs has increased significantly over the last few decades in recognition of their importance for conservation. At present, there are more than 100,000 protected area sites worldwide, covering nearly 12% of the world's land surface [18–20]. Currently there are 34 forest PAs in Bangladesh which represent about 17.5% of the total forest land of the country and 1.8% of country's total land [21].

Bangladesh Forest Department shifts its paradigm of conventional forest management to community-led management for ensuring effective governance of natural resources. A total of 34 reserved forests have been declared as protected area where 23 PAs are managed through active participation of community people which is known as co-management. Community people come forward along with the forest department regarding conservation through ensuring sustainable natural resource management.
