TITLE:
The Role of Community-Based Ecotourism in Biodiversity Conservation in the Mount Oku Area, Cameroon
AUTHORS:
Jicenta N. Foncha, Assonwa E. Fouomene
KEYWORDS:
Conservation, Community Involvement, Cultural Heritage, Livelihood Diversification, Value-Chain
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.11 No.12,
December
29,
2023
ABSTRACT: Forests are biodiversity hotspots which
provide livelihood and act as safety nets for adjacent communities. Increasing dependence on forest is threatening this
biodiversity. Ecotourism, a biodiversity conservation strategy has the
potential to restore degraded habitat, and create socio-cultural and economic
benefits that improve communities’ livelihoods. This study focused on the role
of community-based ecotourism in biodiversity
conservation in the Mount Oku forest, of the North West region of Cameroon. The
study identified and ranked livelihood
activities that led to biodiversity destruction, assessed ecotourism potentials
and conservation practices, identified ecotourism benefits and assessed
household income levels before and after the institution of ecotourism. We
randomly selected three communities from the study area. The study was
guided by the Forest Management Plan, the Simple
Management Plan of the Kilum/Ijim forest project and the concept of Biosphere
Reservation. Descriptive statistics were simple percentages presented on
tables, while the inferential statistics of Wilcoxon rank test was used to
analyze the data collected for the study. Our findings reveal that, the
livelihood activities that led to biodiversity destruction include agriculture,
logging, fuelwood collection and grazing.
Ecotourism potentials/conservation strategies were nature-based, education-based, culture-based,
and agriculture-based; value chain was integrated in all these aspects which enhanced
livelihood diversification. The benefits include business opportunities,
infrastructure development, and forest regeneration. Income level generated
after the institution of ecotourism was higher than the level of income before
(Z = -1442, p = 0.001). Clear indicators need to be established to measure long-term
project effectiveness in biodiversity conservation and livelihood sustainability.