ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the historical perspectives of the evolution of the pastoral system in the former Soviet era, and during the current period of transition to a market economy. Degradation of dryland pastures is known as a challenging factor in many developing and transition countries in the Greater Central Asian region – home to one of the largest trans-boundary desert ecosystems. The process of transition towards leasehold, private or community-based rangeland use rights is still in the formative stage in most of the states. The analysis of political economy incentives during the transition period indicates that the central government considered a far-reaching land reform in pastoral areas as too risky from a political point of view. In combination with the political economy factors presented here, the current regimes could use the unique past experience positively and apply a science-based approach to achieve a fairly successful management of the common property resource.
