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Establishment of Sustainable Livelihood Strategies and Natural Resource Management in Tropical Rain Forest and its Surrounding Areas of Cameroon: Integrating the Global Environmental Concerns with Local Livelihood Needs

Bioresources

Republic of Cameroon

Finished

Establishment of Sustainable Livelihood Strategies and Natural Resource Management in Tropical Rain Forest and its Surrounding Areas of Cameroon: Integrating the Global Environmental Concerns with Local Livelihood Needs

Protecting Tropical Rainforest through Raising Living Standards of the Local Population

Principal Investigator

- Prof.
  ARAKI Shigeru
  The Center for African Area Studies, Kyoto University

ODA Recipient Country

Republic of Cameroon

Research Institutions in Japan

Kyoto University

Research Institutions in Counterpart Country

Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD) / University of Yaounde I / University of Dschang / University of Douala

Adoption fiscal year

FY 2010

Research Period

5 Years

Overview of the Research Project

Preserving carbon stock and biodiversity of tropical rainforests
The huge coverage of tropical rain forests in the Congo basin plays a vital role in preserving carbon stock and biodiversity. However, about 60 million people in this region also depend on the rainforest for fuel, food, medicines and construction materials. This project aims at protecting troical rainforests, while also raising the living standards of local populations through promotion of nontimber forest products (NTFPs). Local populations take part in surveys of utilization and ecology of NTFPs, and these activities provide a sound basis for establishing systems for sustainable use of forest resources by community organizations.

Raising living standards by bolstering traditional cassava production
We are aiming to raise living standards by bolstering cassava production and establishing market channels for processed cassava, and for alcoholic and other beverages manufactured from surplus cassava produce. We will also reassess non-timber forest products as an alternative to the over-exploitation of timber. The project's findings will be used to construct sustainable land use and environmental protection models for both the forest and its contact zones. The work done up to FY2012 revealed seasonal production changes of NTFPs, as well as wildlife population density. In addition, the results of local experiments with improved cassava varieties showed that it is possible to double the cassava yield, and new varieties have been distributed to all village households through stem cuttings.

Photo gallery

Cassava tubers grow in the surface dark horizon, and it is thus important to protect this soil.

The people of Gribe, a mix of hunters/gatherers and farmers, were asked to participate in discussions about the construction of a base for researching non-timber forest products.

Women processing cassava on a rock outcrop 1.5 km out of their homes. Dust is a big problem in the dry season, and many women travel 1-2 km from the road to process cassava on rock outcrops and riverbanks.