Combating Illegal Logging in Cameroon: A Critical Appraisal

This book assesses illegal logging in the forestry sector of Cameroon. The idea behind the study is to emphasize forest law enforcement and good governance, with the hope that such endeavors will significantly reduce the phenomenon and its devastating impact in the country. The administration faces challenges in ensuring that the benefits accrue to the local populations, due to inadequate compliance and follow-up to ensure that the local poor, who are dependent on the forests, reap these benefits. The way forward, therefore, is to continue sensitizing the public, guarantee the independence of the judiciary by ensuring that reports from the Independent Observer go directly to the Judiciary without passing through the administration, as this questions the objectivity of the administration. In a bid to step up law enforcement and good governance, we need a restructuring of the system as a whole and to promote and finance better socio-economic opportunities for the local populations.