Sustainable Management of Natural Resources
With respect to the Cameroon forestry law of 1994 that gives rural communities access rights to forest resources in or around their villages and to effectively participate in the management of forest concessions in collaboration with logging companies, Bridge reorganised and trained 72 selected VFMCs around Manyu Division on their roles in the management of FMUs in accordance with the law. Focus has been on VFMC around FMUs: 11001, 11002, 11003/4 and 11006 all under being concessions of SEFECAM/SIENCAM. Bridge , on the invitation of the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife, carried out the aforementioned trainings within the framework of the implementation of activities of the project “Amanagement et Suivi des forets du Cameroun” within the contractual obligation entered between MINFOF and Bridge under the Indebtedness and Development program (C2D) in pursuance to the dispositions of the convention of affectation No. CCMI233 01 G of 28th of June 2012 signed between AFD and the government of Cameroon. Against this backdrop, BRIDGE organised two-day workshops each in Eyumojock, Mamfe, and Tinto Subdivisions respectively to train some selected VFMCs around the concerned FMUs in Manyu Division. The focus of the workshop sessions was on the
following:
» Forest and wildlife legislation in Cameroon;
» Importance of forest governance and its importance to the government;
» Importance, roles, responsibilities of VFMCs and their relationship with companies exploiting timber in the area and MINFOF;
» Importance of FMUs and their contribution to council and village development;
» User rights, surveillance and control of illegal activities in FMUs;
» Conflict management and resolution;