Contribution des forêts du sud-est du Cameroun au bien-être des populations locales

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the level of contribution of South-Eastern cameroonian forests to the well-being of local populations according to land use. Three villages in this region formed the study area namely Mintoum, holder of a community forest, located between the Forest Management Unit (FMU) of the Pallisco Forest Company and the Dja Wildlife Reserve (RFD), Eschiambor, holder of a community forest and located between the FMU of the forest company SIM and that of Pallisco, finally, Malène 1 located in the RFD. Three specific objectives have been achieved: 1) to assess the contribution of forests in south-eastern Cameroon to local development, 2) to assess the share of household welfare from forests in South-Eastern Cameroon, 3) to compare local and international standards of welfare. The results show that forests in South-Eastern Cameroon contribute to local development for two villages ; local infrastructures have been built in Mintoum and Eschiambor through community forest revenues, social achievements and the annual forest royalty. In this case, there is an influence of land use. The forest contributes to the different welfare criteria for the three villages with some significant differences between the villages, that could indicate an influence of land use. However, the forest contributes as much as the other rural activities to the well-being of the populations. Finally, with some exceptions, local standards of well-being are similar to those of the Sustainable Development Goals of United Nations.