In her first whirlwind trip to the Southeast of Cameroon, US Ambassador,
Janet Garvey, garnered enough knowledge to conclude that "this is a wonderful
landscape and a groundbreaking program." It stands to reason, for the
Southeast of Cameroon stands out in ecological importance. It is a natural
haven for iconic wildlife species like elephants, gorillas and chimpanzees.
After a three-day sojourn in the WWF Jengi program area, the Ambassador went
away with the impression that conservation efforts have been successful in
all facets, but poaching and poverty remain the major challenges.
 
The Post: You have been to the Southeast of Cameroon for three days already,
what has struck you most?
 
Garvey: I was struck by the incredible beauty. It is not something that I see
everyday. It is a wonderful landscape. I also have been struck by the work
that people are doing here. This is a big job with a lot of challenges. There
are people here day in day out doing that under difficult circumstances. It
is really inspiring.
 
You have been to other protected areas in Cameroon, what difference do you
observe from what you have seen here?
 
The difference I see here is in the effort to integrate the local community
into the solution and also to enable sustainable economic activities to be
carried out. I think that is really the future for a lot of protected areas.
We cannot ask people whose livelihoods depend on the forest to give that up
even though we are paying for conservation.
 
So, the effort to include the local communities, to encourage them have their
own means of sustained economic activities here is very special. The gorillas
are pretty special too. I have not seen gorillas in the wild before so that
was very exciting. We have also been told this is a tri-country effort.
 
In a part of the world where there have been many political challenges, this
is really a model for cooperation amongst countries and a chance to build up
some confidence and experience in working together as a team to help protect
this area.
 
From what you have seen and heard, do you have the conviction that this can
work?
 
I certainly have the great hope that this can work. It is a daily battle. The
forces that will misuse these resources are certainly great, be they
commercial, poachers or whatever. Because people are here working everyday,
trying to raise awareness, maintain the park and working with partners that
is the only way it is going to be saved. I am hopeful. The chances are great.
When you have people who are committed to a goal, it is hard to stop them.
 
How far is the US government ready to go to ensure this effort continues?
 
We are happy to be a partner and you know the USAID, which is the United
States government, was very instrumental in starting the Central African
Regional Program for the Environment, CARPE, which is the project we are
looking at.
 
It has been a rare effort on the part of the US government to do something
for the long term. And it has encouraged a lot of other partners to join us.
This is the first time we have two Peace Corps volunteers based in WWF in a
national park. I think it is wonderful and I would like to see that continue.
 
They are certainly having a great time and I think they have added value to
the project. CARPE continues for another couple of years. We will have to see
what happens after that. One of the things we can do right is to work with
some commercial interests and mining companies that are moving into the area,
to make sure that they work to ensure that the environmental damage that
comes from an activity like mining is rectified and that they contribute to
some of the programmes here.
 
I think everyone recognises that this programme has been remarkably
successful in all aspects: on developing skills within the community, on
promoting cooperation amongst countries, on protecting the environment and
raising awareness. We recognise the importance of it and I certainly hope
that we are able to continue to support it.
 
What are some of the pitfalls you noticed in the project?
 
Poaching is a serious problem. I think it is worrying as it appears to be
getting worse. Not only are the poachers more but they are better armed and
more willing to engage in violent activities. It is something that really
needs to be looked into, to give the game rangers and others the capabilities
to fight against the poachers.
 
Poverty is also a real challenge. You cannot expect people to change their
behaviour if they are not able to feed and send their children to school or
have a better life. I am very gratified to see how integrated community
leaders are in this project, but I think one has to be careful. As the US
government, WWF and other partners try to conserve this environment, they
also have to remember that there were people here before they arrived and
that their needs, culture and desires have to be part of the project.
 
There are allegations that some influential people ('white-collared'
poachers) secretly supply guns and bullets to local people to poach elephants
and other wild animals, and it has been difficult to arrest them because of
their influence and power. Can the US government help out?
 
In our conversation with government officials here, at the provincial and
national levels, we shall stress how this is important for Cameroon. It is
part of the larger effort we and other donor countries are trying to make in
the fight against corruption which is really a disease eating up the spine of
Cameroon. It has to stop.
 
The government has to have a way to identify why corruption and step up
efforts to punish those found guilty of it. I also realised that in the case
of poaching we are in a race against the clock. It may not be sufficient to
say this is going to take a generation to improve because there might not be
any elephants if something is not done.
 
I certainly will go back to Yaounde with a stronger sense of what the problem
is and the scale of the problem. I will do my best to continue to raise
consciousness both in my government and the Cameroon government. The big
problem is, people understand they are concerned but they are very far away.
 
There are many other things they need to worry about. It is very difficult to
be in a remote area. The problems are great but they seem far away. I would
like to see us work very much on education. I remember the anti-smoking
campaign in the US started when children went back home and ordered their
parents to stop smoking. The more we make the message well known, the sooner
people will stop buying what the poachers are selling.
 
This is a groundbreaking program working in the community and on the
environment where the needs of the community are so pre-eminent. Keep it up;
we are with you and you guys are doing a heroic work. People appreciate what
you are doing, how important it is and we need you to keep doing it. You are
heroes amongst heroes in Cameroon.

http://www.postnewsline.com/2008/08/poaching-povert.html