The Challenges of Decentralized Management of the Ngoyla-Mintom Forest Massif (South-East Cameroon)

Abstract

This research is based on the participatory appraisal of the Ngoyla-Mintom Forest Resources Conservation and Sustainable Use Project. It allows the various stakeholders met to take stock of the success factors of the decentralized forest management project implemented in their region and the constraints related to its ownership. The grid for this participatory assessment is based on the framework for assessing the effectiveness of the management of protected areas developed by Hockings et al (2006) on behalf of the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA). This involves measuring the following six key aspects: the context for creating a protected area (potential and threats); site management planning; inputs (inputs - resources or means of action); the management process; the outputs in terms of immediate effects (outputs) and finally, the results in terms of sustainability (outcomes). The choice of this evaluation framework is justified by the fact that it has become the world benchmark for the management of protected areas and fits well with the purpose of this study. This reflection is based on data from secondary and primary sources. The main results obtained show that the impacts of the Ngoyla-Mintom Project are globally positive in ecological and socio-economic terms. As for the impacts on the living environment, we are witnessing the regeneration of flora and the repopulation of wildlife species.