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Resources

Key documents

• Case study
• Summary (PDF, 68kb)
• Presentation from experts workshop, April 2006 (PDF, 196kb)

Also on this site

• Regional Activities - Africa
• IFM Bibliography - Cameroon
• IFM Bibliography - Africa

Cameroon's forest sector is the second largest export revenue source for the economy, contributing almost 10% of GDP in 2005, and representing 25% of all export earnings. A competitive bidding system for the allocation of forest concessions has been in place since 1997, with criteria including the installation of wood processing capacity. Almost 80% of logging areas have been allocated so far.

The installed processing capacity is estimated at around 3 million cubic metres - this is twice the annual allowable cut estimated at 1.5 million cubic metres. There are currently about 150 companies active in logging and timber processing; European companies dominate the sector with more than 80% of national timber production carried out by less than 20 companies.

The combination of implementation of forest sector reforms with significant institutional weaknesses had led to a high level of illegal logging activity. Forest control and monitoring has become a major concern in the country and several initiatives have been promoted in that respect:

• Independent observer to monitor forest titles attribution commission
• Independent observer on forest activities
• Forest products exports verification by SGS
• Computerised System for Forest Data Management (SIGIF)
• SGS support for forest products export control
• Introduction of the bar code technology system
• Staffing of the Central Control Brigade to oversee control of forest activities.

As part of a national move towards better governance, independent forest monitoring was introduced, with donor support, to observe the title allocation process and control of forest activities, and to use remote sensing in assessing the level of forestry activity in forest management units. After four years of implementation, it is widely acknowledged that the extent of illegal forest activities in forest management units has decreased. The scope and the percentage of discovered illegalities have been progressively decreasing since 2001; meanwhile it has been observed that illegal activities are tending to shift from the Permanent to the Non-Permanent Forest Domain. Transparency has improved, as has the recognition of the role of civil society organisations as a key ingredient in the improvement of forest governance. A forest control strategy prepared within the framework of the sectoral programme is available to guide law enforcement.

Cameroon is preparing for the negotiation of a Voluntary Partnership Agreement within the EU FLEGT process with the aim to start negotiations in early 2007. The success of the forest sector reforms initiated over the past ten years is now dependent on the willingness and capacity to implement the necessary institutional changes, including putting in place verification systems to improve the credibility of the sector and the benefits it offers to key stakeholders.

Among lessons learnt so far are the positive changes which can occur in the behaviour of private companies regarding Illegal activities, and the need for national buy-in for any verification or independent monitoring scheme, as donor influence has been critical so far. The role of the donor community has been instrumental in getting the government to embark on improved governance in the forest sector. Ownership remains weak, as can be seen in efforts to centralise the forest control function, and revisions to the terms of reference of the independent observer to reduce its independence in information dissemination.