Global Policy Forum

By Jean Nke Ndih*

MANY Westerners, whatever their background, believe that environmental activism is exclusive to industrialised societies and are sometimes surprised to learn that Africa has environmentalists. Awareness of such issues runs deep here: traditional African values have been abandoned and natural resources plundered, especially by foreign companies in collusion with national governments. The failure of the continent's democratic experiment has thwarted policies based on the common good and the public interest.

African traditional beliefs reflect environmental concerns at every stage of life. People define themselves in part by their relationship with nature, and this is borne out by initiation rituals, social taboos and other acts in homage to the vitality of our surroundings. Rural people, whether fishing, farming, hunting, gathering, are closely bound to nature and its gifts. Ancient knowledge, such as traditional medicine, may contribute to heightened environmental awareness, which may foster an expansive approach to economic, political or cultural problems.

The environment in the north of Cameroon has been severely damaged by desertification, and this now threatens the forests of the central region. This disaster has an ecological component, but industry is the real culprit, since it does not give forests enough time to regenerate their dense cover of trees. Soaring poverty rates have forced residents to clear more growth for firewood. Clear-cutting even affects the Sahel zone, where the government launched its northern forest plan (Opération Sahel Vert) in the late 1960s, aimed at halting desertification by planting trees that needed a lot of water.

In the southern part of the new desert, deforestation looms. Cameroon's forest/agricultural sector accounts for 42% of GDP and employs nearly 60% of the population. Oil, wood and cocoa are the three main exports. Cameroon's forests were historically unharmed by human activity; logging techniques and demand for forest products were in balance with the ecosystem. There are several explanations for the current plight, including cocoa cultivation, which dates to the colonial era, and required the clearing of forested areas. Cocoa production was then boosted to maximise earnings even though prices dropped on world markets. This became risky in the 1980s, when foreign timber companies with direct government ties began extensive forest cutting.

Although deforestation makes foreign companies rich, it worsens the poverty of forest-dependent peoples. In March seven Cameroonian villagers filed suit in France charging the Doumé Affiliated Forest Company (SFID), a Cameroon-based subsidiary of the French forestry group Rougier SA, with destroying private property, forgery, official corruption and other crimes - SFID illegally, and without the knowledge of the rightful owners, cut down trees for specific types of wood and built trails across fields for access to forests. Faced with the indifference of the Cameroon authorities, the villagers banded together with Friends of the Earth and took their case to a Paris-based tribunal (1). Protecting tropical forests, a goal of the 1992 Rio summit, was taken up at this year's world summit on sustainable development. But despite treaties and commitments, the government of Cameroon has yet to take action.

Another threat to the environment and public health is the unwholesome state of Cameroon's cities. Unchecked development, the result of the rural exodus that began in the late 1970s, has worsened matters. With a combined population of roughly 2m, the two largest urban centres are Douala and the capital Yaoundé, both of which have bad public health infrastructure. Although Yaoundé has mountains of uncollected and untreated rubbish, the government has not responded with effective long-term measures.

Recently Cameroon has become dependent on a controversial pipeline construction project to develop landlocked Chad's southern oilfields. A consortium of two US companies, Chevron and Exxon Mobil, plus Malaysia's Petronas won World Bank backing to develop Chad's oil reserves, which will flow along the 1,050 km-long pipeline to Cameroon's port city of Kribi. This project is disturbing. Oil leaks are always a threat and construction of the pipeline will worsen deforestation. Financial assistance for those affected is inadequate, and although the forest peoples have had their lives wrecked, there is no guarantee they will ever receive proper compensation.

The project has provoked rancorous debate; especially since, despite official promises, the Nigerians and Congolese have yet to benefit from their oil development, and their health and education systems are still dysfunctional. The oil companies are quick to use private militias to protect their installations: safeguarding private property trumps public safety.

Cameroon's political climate has galvanised environmental activists. Only true democracy can create lasting solutions to environmental problems, which often stem from top-down governmental decision-making; problems happen at the local level, far removed from the bureaucrats. It is essential that we challenge a political system that only benefits a minority of citizens.

* President of the Défense de l'environnement camerounais (Cameroon Environmental Defence) party

(1) See http://www.amisdelaterre.org/article…

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