SUMMARYIn Central Africa, trophy hunting constitutes an incentive-based approach for sustainable wildlife management. We collected data from the wildlife administration, safari hunting enterprises and local wildlife management committees, to provide an order of magnitude of the financial performance of this sector in Cameroon. In 2012, trophy hunting was likely to generate an annual turnover of € 7.5 million and its added value could amount to only 0.0001% of GDP although these hunting zones cover 12% of the national territory. The profit margin for professional guides had become negative, with a net annual profit around € -0.7 million. The severe crisis in the trophy hunting sector is mainly due to an increase in the management costs of the hunting zones and the diminishing price of hunting safaris. The State plays a crucial role in enhancing the financial attractiveness of trophy hunting by the restoration of security in the Northern region and by technical measures to (1) clarify the allocation process for hunting areas, (2) simplify regulations and (3) establish an incentives system for law enforcement at national and local levels.Keywords: sport hunting, sustainable wildlife management, hunting zone, conservation La chasse sportive reste-t-elle un modèle rentable pour conserver la biodiversité au Cameroun?En Afrique centrale, la chasse sportive constitue une approche incitative pour la gestion durable de la faune sauvage. Nous avons collecté des données auprès de l'administration en charge de la faune, des entreprises de safari de chasse et des comités locaux de gestion de la faune pour produire un ordre de grandeur des performances financières de ce secteur au Cameroun. En 2012, la chasse sportive a probablement généré un chiffre d'affaires annuel autour de 7.5 millions d'Euros et sa valeur ajoutée a pu contribuer à seulement 0.0001% du PIB, alors que les zones de chasse sportive couvrent 12% du territoire national. La marge de profit des guides professionnels était devenue négative, avec un profit annuel autour de -0.7 million d'Euros. La crise sévère que traverse le secteur de la chasse sportive est principalement due à une augmentation des coûts de gestion des zones de chasse et au prix décroissant de ces safaris. L'Etat joue un rôle crucial pour rehausser l'attractivité de ce secteur en rétablissant la sécurité dans la région Nord et par des mesures techniques visant à (1) clarifier le processus d'allocation des zones de chasse, (2) simplifier la réglementation et (3) établir un système incitatif de mise en oeuvre de la loi aux échelles nationale et locale. ¿es la caza de trofeo un modelo económico rentable para la conservación de la biodiversidad en Camerún?En África central, la caza de trofeo consiste en un enfoque basado en incentivos para la gestión sostenible de la fauna. Compilamos datos de la administración pública a cargo de la fauna, de empresas de safari y caza, y de comités locales de gestión de la fauna, para proveer un orden de magnitud del desempeño financiero de este sector en Camerún. E...
By 2010, about 25% (180 million ha) of The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) producer countries' permanent forest estate was being managed using an approved forest management plan (FMP). While the existence of a FMP is often used as evidence of sustainable forest management (SFM), State officials mandated to monitor and verify FMPs' implementation often lack the technical knowledge and political incentives to assess the changes that have been introduced, notably in terms of harvested volumes and species. Among tropical timber producers, Cameroon is considered to be exemplary for its progressive forest regulatory framework. Here we aim to estimate for the first time in sub-Saharan Africa the causal impact of the implementation of FMPs on harvested volumes, species and carbon stocks. We do so by using a 12-year (1998–2009) unbalanced longitudinal data set of a detailed, official harvesting inventory of 81 concessions in Cameroon. Results provide evidence to the theoretical expectations that for many years many practitioners have had on the implementation of SFM, i.e. that FMPs show a substantial opportunity to reduce carbon emissions from forest while presenting logging companies with acceptable financial trade-offs. We explore the technical and political reasons for our findings and conclude that these analyses are important for countries that are underwriting carbon-related schemes in which they propose to reduce their emissions through the effective implementation of SFM. We also demonstrate that producer countries do record useful information that, when effectively used, can help them to inform their policies and improve their sustainable development strategies. (Résumé d'auteur
In the Congo Basin where nearly 20 million ha of concessions are exploited according to management plans, improved forest management (IFM) has become a strategy of prime importance when setting up the REDD+ mechanism. For logging companies, REDD+ projects provide the opportunity to compensate a voluntary reduction of the logging intensity by valuing the associated carbon gain. We explored, from the perspective of a logging company, a range of scenarios for reducing logging intensity so as to assess the possibilities for emissions reductions and to evaluate the financial feasibility of such projects. On the basis of Monte Carlo simulations for a typical export-oriented forest concession, we calculated intervals of break-even prices of permanent carbon credits. We show that logging intensity reduction is an attractive option when there is a complete cessation of logging, and for little exploited and low-profit forests. The most feasible IFM projects would be those that require a major reduction of logging intensity. Our work suggests that—instead of improving forest logging techniques—IFM projects based on a voluntary reduction of logging intensity would rather lead the exclusive choice of carbon or timber valuation. Carbon market prices are too low to be an incentive to change logging practices toward more climate-smart forest management, and a change of paradigm to change actors' behaviors would be needed. (Résumé d'auteur
Carnivores are threatened across Sub-Saharan Africa mostly due to retaliatory killing by people, the loss of prey species and their habitats. Due to their food and space requirements, they regularly come into conflict with humans. In many regions, information about carnivore occurrence and human-carnivore conflict remains poorly known particularly in parts of West-and Central Africa. Here, we assessed the local ecological knowledge on carnivores and associated conflicts in the forest-savannah transition zone in Cameroon. We conducted a semi-structured questionnaire survey with 649 local inhabitants from 23 villages around the Tchabal Mbabo Mountain Range, Yoko Council Forest and Mpem et Djim National Park. The majority of local people could easily identify the lions (73.8%, n=479) and correctly named (90.2%, n=432), whereas other species (e.g. leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, African wild dogs, as well as the medium-sized carnivores) were identified with more difficulty. Most respondents (71.3%, n=463) reported depredation of their livestock, mostly by lions, spotted hyenas, civets and foxes and half of respondents (50.2%, n=326) reported retaliation against predators as the main action resorted to protect their livestock. The use of poisons against wild predators was advocated by some respondents, an additional threat to wild carnivores. Local people suggested construction of enclosures (46.4%, n=301) as the most important mitigation measures. Our study provides baseline information on carnivore occurrence in Cameroon’s transitional forest savannah environments and threats to these animals from local people.
Depuis la Convention de Rio (1992), la gestion durable des forêts est devenue un enjeu majeur dans le bassin du Congo. Cette thématique s’est traduite notamment par une révision des législations forestières de la plupart des pays de la sous-région dans le sens d’une meilleure prise en compte de la biodiversité. Les espèces animales sont particulièrement concernées puisque, désormais, les plans d’aménagement des concessions forestières doivent obligatoirement inclure un volet ayant trait à la faune sauvage. Par ailleurs, la certification forestière qui s’impose progressivement dans la sous-région constitue un autre outil de promotion de l’aménagement forestier durable, y compris pour la faune. En vue de cet objectif, tous les systèmes actuellement appliqués dans les forêts en voie de certification soumettent les exploitants à des exigences de gestion particulières en matière de faune. Or la connaissance de l’état des populations animales en présence est un prérequis indispensable à la planification de la gestion de cette ressource. C’est pourquoi, depuis quelques années, les recensements des grands et moyens mammifères se multiplient dans les forêts de production en cours d’aménagement. L’article fait le bilan critique des méthodes de comptage appliquées jusqu’à présent dans le contexte de l’aménagement forestier. Il soulève les nombreux inconvénients auxquels se heurtent les pratiques actuelles et s’interroge sur leur pertinence dans une perspective de suivi et de gestion du potentiel faunique des forêts exploitées.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.