Francis Mbunya, PhD

Gorillas have a wide range of food items in their diet; fruits, leaves, shoot, roots, piths, and insects hence are considered as generalists (Caldecott & Ferris, 2005; Inskipp, 2005). There exists some wide dietary flexibility between gorilla species (western and eastern gorillas). The main focus of the study was investigating on Cross River gorilla (CRG) insectivory and its influence on habitat range suitability at the Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary (THWS). This was based on the hypothesis… Show more

Gorillas have a wide range of food items in their diet; fruits, leaves, shoot, roots, piths, and insects hence are considered as generalists (Caldecott & Ferris, 2005; Inskipp, 2005). There exists some wide dietary flexibility between gorilla species (western and eastern gorillas). The main focus of the study was investigating on Cross River gorilla (CRG) insectivory and its influence on habitat range suitability at the Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary (THWS). This was based on the hypothesis that insectivory is a determinant to habitat suitability in Cross River gorillas. Reconnaissance survey conducted resulted to 115 gorilla signs recorded amongst which were 19 gorilla dung samples. CRG habitat was characterized by indirect signs recorded within various vegetation type, canopy cover, slope and elevation. This was in order to understand and relate habitat range and food availability. Insect food availability was assessed based on the number of insect/ant mount recorded along CRG trails. Data analysis included Kolmogorov sminorv normality test and non-parametric Spearman’s Rho correlation test to measure relationships between variables and Kruskal-Wallis test to compare groups for significant difference. Cross tabulations were accompanied with Cramers’ V-test in order to measure the level of association between 2 categorical variables most especially in cases where they were nominal. Statistical observations were discussed at the 95% Confidence Level (Alpha=0.05). Fecal analysis revealed insect foods amongst fruits (Afromomum sp., Musa sp., Marantacae sp. etc.), and leaves in THWS CRG. Results showed that insect consumption seemed to decrease with increased altitude. The weak and negative relation in number of insect parts and altitude range permits that the hypothesis of this study be accepted. Show less

The use of sophisticated tools and unconventional methods in wildlife exploitation is a threat
to wildlife conservation. This study analysed the influence of bushmeat harvesting on wildlife
abundance in the Tofala-Mone Forest Corridor (TMFC), Cameroon. Data were collected
across 8 villages using semi-structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews and transect
survey. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used for quantitative data while
content analyses were used… Show more

The use of sophisticated tools and unconventional methods in wildlife exploitation is a threat
to wildlife conservation. This study analysed the influence of bushmeat harvesting on wildlife
abundance in the Tofala-Mone Forest Corridor (TMFC), Cameroon. Data were collected
across 8 villages using semi-structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews and transect
survey. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used for quantitative data while
content analyses were used for qualitative data. The key finding revealed that the main reason
for bushmeat harvesting was for income generation. Agriculture, large family sizes and
motivation were some of the factors influencing harvesting. An average of 16.0 ± 2.0 animals
was harvested weekly per harvester, giving an annual average of 272.8901tons per harvester.
Annual bushmeat harvested stood at 2,665,156 Francs CFA (5,330 US Dollar) per harvester.
Most harvesters (97.3 %) reported a decrease in wildlife abundance. Hunting time per catch
was reported to be about 3.48 hours compared to lesser time in the past. A negative
correlation was obtained between harvested wildlife species and scarce wildlife species. This
suggested that bushmeat exploitation was a major threat to wildlife abundance in the study
areas. Show less

With 767 million people (one out of 10 individuals) in the world living under
US$1.90 a day, half of the extreme poor (389 million) live in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Poverty results from and comprises of a lack of basic securities, which not only include
financial resources, but also education, employment, housing, health care, and other
related aspects. Despite the fact that women represent more than half of the world
population, their contribution to economic activities is below… Show more

With 767 million people (one out of 10 individuals) in the world living under
US$1.90 a day, half of the extreme poor (389 million) live in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Poverty results from and comprises of a lack of basic securities, which not only include
financial resources, but also education, employment, housing, health care, and other
related aspects. Despite the fact that women represent more than half of the world
population, their contribution to economic activities is below their average potential.
Only 50% of women of working age belong to the labor force, compared to 77% of men.
In this study, a total of 222 households surveyed by questionnaires revealed that women
capabilities to contribute to poverty alleviation are limited by both their individual
capacity and social networks within which they identify themselves. Efforts to increase
women participation in poverty alleviation actions should encourage women capacity
building by providing incentives and opportunities that enable them to increase their
competitive potentials in community development and policy-making. Policies that
protect rights and access of women to education and encourage them to complete at least
a high school degree will go along to increase opportunities for women to participate in
poverty alleviation. Furthermore, poverty reduction programs for women should focus on
their participation and not only on their services provision. This implies that not only the
effort of providers is important, but also the ability and well-being of women. Show less

Ideally, both eenvironmental protection and human development policies should
improve human well-being through the conservation of ecosystems that provide valuable
services,. However, in practicallye, this rarely happen rarely. Settings for environmentdevelopment
interactions are complex because they consist of diverse ecological systems
as well as and human engineered knowledge systems. Using the pathways approach
analytical framework to sustainability, this paper analysed how… Show more

Ideally, both eenvironmental protection and human development policies should
improve human well-being through the conservation of ecosystems that provide valuable
services,. However, in practicallye, this rarely happen rarely. Settings for environmentdevelopment
interactions are complex because they consist of diverse ecological systems
as well as and human engineered knowledge systems. Using the pathways approach
analytical framework to sustainability, this paper analysed how actors’ understandings
and scale of knowledge in environment-development interventions influence sustainable
management. Data for this study used mix methods, includeing interviews, questionnaires,
policy document texts and field observations. The main findings suggested that
the diverse views and scales of knowledge mobilised by different actors in conservationdevelopment
interventions is a major challenge in producing sustainable outcomes. The
inability of conservation practitioners to conveniently reconcile different narratives held
by different actors leads to the domination of powerful actors narrations, on which policies
are based. The major setback in attaining sustainable forest management does not
necessarily lie in the conflicting interests of actors, but also in the social processes that
guided the negotiation of these conflicting interests. This study argues that local people
and traditional structures have the potential to contribute sustainable forest management
processes if offered the space. Given that lLocal people are often not directly engaged in
forest management planning, their actions are directly or indirectly influenced by other
actors (elites). This makes it more complicated to achieve processes that might lead to
sustainable forest management. There is a need to create Convenient space is needed to
that enables conservation practitioners to sees and promotes conservation through the
lens of the local people.
Show less

As global population and corresponding environmental threats continue to rise, ensuring food security and safety is a critical challenge. Farmers’ dependent on chemical fertilizers to boost productivity in Cameroon has become a major concern recently, especially in peri- urban areas where the demand for staple food is on the rise. Data collected from ten villages within the Buea municipality, investigated the perception of local farmers on chemical fertilizer's application and its impact on… Show more

As global population and corresponding environmental threats continue to rise, ensuring food security and safety is a critical challenge. Farmers’ dependent on chemical fertilizers to boost productivity in Cameroon has become a major concern recently, especially in peri- urban areas where the demand for staple food is on the rise. Data collected from ten villages within the Buea municipality, investigated the perception of local farmers on chemical fertilizer's application and its impact on food safety. Two hundred and fifty six (256) households were sampled through questionnaires. One hundred and six (106) key informants were equally sampled through in-depth interviews. Field observations also contributed to the validation of results. Using descriptive statistics and content analysis, data collected were analyzed based on; literal, interpretative and reflexive. Key findings revealed that majority of the farmers, seventy eight percent (78%) were aware of possible risk, that inappropriate application of chemical fertilizers on food crops could pose serious problems to human health when consumed. Most health risk associated with inappropriate application of chemical fertilizers was reported to be linked to vegetable consumption. The findings also revealed that about eighty five percent (85%) of the farmers sampled had no formal training on the application of chemical fertilizers. This study argues that although the use of chemical fertilizers may be viewed to be low scale in the study area, but the projected impacts on food safety cannot be ignored. There is therefore an urgent need for agricultural policies that will focus on improving local farmer’s knowledge on the use and application of inorganic fertilizers and eventually to encourage the use of organic fertilizers more. This will help avoid chemical related health problems from food crops while ensuring food safety and security. Show less

This study assessed the influence of media communication on environmental behavior in Buea, Cameroon. Effective media communication has the potential of motivating friendly environmental habits. However, media communication approaches to influence effective conscious environmental behavior is still a challenge. This study was conducted in Buea, South West Region. Mixed methodology including household questionnaires, in-depth interviews and field observations were used. The main findings… Show more

This study assessed the influence of media communication on environmental behavior in Buea, Cameroon. Effective media communication has the potential of motivating friendly environmental habits. However, media communication approaches to influence effective conscious environmental behavior is still a challenge. This study was conducted in Buea, South West Region. Mixed methodology including household questionnaires, in-depth interviews and field observations were used. The main findings revealed that media communication on environmental issues is still conducted merely as a public obligation rather as a tool to influence behavorial change towards the environment. Moreover, media communication was revealed to be very expensive for individuals and institutions that are willing to promote environmental education through the media. Despite the increase in media presence in the study area, media communication has not been able to capture and utilize approaches that can lead to interactive communication, and influence positive environmental habits. There is therefore an urgent need to explore detail strategies that conform to local ethics and has the potential to initiate interactive environmental communication. Show less

Challenges in forest management are linked to limitations of agency capacities to adjust decisions, especially
in the face of dynamic and complex resource access and new information. This study analysed the
dynamic character of actors and institutions, and the factors that shaped access to forest resources in
Cameroon using the case of Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary. Mixed methods, including focused interviews,
questionnaires and field observations were used to elicit information… Show more

Challenges in forest management are linked to limitations of agency capacities to adjust decisions, especially
in the face of dynamic and complex resource access and new information. This study analysed the
dynamic character of actors and institutions, and the factors that shaped access to forest resources in
Cameroon using the case of Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary. Mixed methods, including focused interviews,
questionnaires and field observations were used to elicit information from actors interacting with forest
resource. Data analysis used three different perspectives: literal; interpretative; and, reflexive. The key
findings revealed firstly, that legal authority over management of forest resources does not necessarily
equate actor’s ability to control access. Ability is empowered by capacity that considers and deal with field
realities. Secondly, formal institutions placed more value on negotiating legal status over forest resources
and less value on seeking to understand and deal with management challenges in the field. Thus, this
study argues that the transfer of rights from informal to formal institutions might not necessarily secure
effectiveness in forest management. There is need to rethink the dependence on formal arrangements to
regulate forest access and consider possible options for empowering local dwellers to engage in a more
self-governed sustainable management approach. Show less

Local participation in forest management remains a fundamental challenge to be solved despite the growing political and academic interest in participatory management. This study analyzed how community forestry implementation in Cameroon has affected the participation of local people using two case studies. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were the main methods in data collection. The main findings revealed that majority of local community members (73.3%) were less informed of the… Show more

Local participation in forest management remains a fundamental challenge to be solved despite the growing political and academic interest in participatory management. This study analyzed how community forestry implementation in Cameroon has affected the participation of local people using two case studies. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were the main methods in data collection. The main findings revealed that majority of local community members (73.3%) were less informed of the purpose of community forestry. This limited participatory efforts in the implementation process. The creation and management process of the community forests were more focused on engaging influential actors
rather than enabling social justice as proposed by the legislation.
Marginalization of local community members, which community forestry was created to resolve was still evident. This study argues that although participatory policies are usually designed to benefit the less privileged, the outcomes most often do not match the purpose. There is need for participatory policy debates and development to go beyond theoretical formulation to crafting mechanisms and feedback systems that could ensure successful implementation and follow up. Show less

This article illustrates how institutional transitional processes influence the intended sustainability outcomes in protected forest management in Cameroon, using the case of the Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary. The study revealed that the major setback in attaining sustainable forest management does not necessarily lie in the conflicting interests of actors, but also in the social processes that guided the negotiation of these conflicting interests. Processes initiated by bureaucratic… Show more

This article illustrates how institutional transitional processes influence the intended sustainability outcomes in protected forest management in Cameroon, using the case of the Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary. The study revealed that the major setback in attaining sustainable forest management does not necessarily lie in the conflicting interests of actors, but also in the social processes that guided the negotiation of these conflicting interests. Processes initiated by bureaucratic institutions did not adequately appreciate the efforts of the existing indigenous structures. The differences in the modelling of social change by the agents of change had negative impacts on governance outcomes and disrupted collaborative actions. This study argues that indigenous structures should not just be regarded as mediators in the processes of forest management. Their actions are influenced by powerful actors (elites). They are thus embedded in complex configurations that can retard sustainable forest management processes. There is a need to carefully explore and understand the various contexts in which these complex configurations influence forest management in order to foster sustainable collaborative management. Show less

Boosting knowledge through awareness raising is important in shaping on why, what, when, where, who and how one can benefit from community forest (CF) resources. Based on this assumption, this study assessed how awareness raising has influenced community participation in community forestry in South West Cameroon, with reference to two case studies. A total of 60 participants selected purposively were involved in this study and primary data was collected using interview guides, focus group… Show more

Boosting knowledge through awareness raising is important in shaping on why, what, when, where, who and how one can benefit from community forest (CF) resources. Based on this assumption, this study assessed how awareness raising has influenced community participation in community forestry in South West Cameroon, with reference to two case studies. A total of 60 participants selected purposively were involved in this study and primary data was collected using interview guides, focus group discussions and field observations. Respondents’’ awareness was categorized into five main themes: formation awareness, management committee awareness, management process awareness, rights awareness and benefits sharing awareness. ALAST.ti 5 was used for data analysis and the results revealed that local community members were poorly informed on how the CF came into existence, the main people involved in their management, how they were being managed and on how they could access and benefit from them. Thus, since local community members were less informed, they were unable to participate meaningfully to implementation. In this line, the study argues that for inclusive participation to be enabled in CF implementation in Cameroon, there is an inevitable need to ensure that all intended beneficiaries are well informed on the concept. We recommend that policy interventions should consider strategies that will commit CF managers and other stakeholders to ensure the full awareness of all participants. There is also a need to motivate public debates and research on how local awareness and participation can be sustainably achieved. Show less

This study evaluates the choices indigenous communities living adjacent areas of conservation interest face when the resources are under conservation consideration.

Large mammal and human activity survey

Livelihood challenges in the midst of wildlife conservation