l Accessible technologies and FPIC: independent monitoring with forest communities in Cameroon 161
by the CBOs to discuss the FPIC process
and how well the community protocols
were working. Discussion focused on issues
raised at the beginning of the project, the
nature of their consent in relation to different types of data they were collecting, and to
discuss next steps.
Following local meetings, a regional
meeting was organised for all community
representatives. Local representatives
worked with the CBOs to prepare the advocacy process. Communities identified the
following as key points for the advocacy
process:
• FPIC and community protocols must be
central to all negotiations by government
agencies or outsiders seeking to work with
communities or on their land.
• Conflicts of interests between customary
and logging uses of the same forest are
widespread. All maps produced prove that
logging activities overlap with community
territory, even when this territory is far
from legal logging areas.
• Relevant government officials should take
action to investigate illegal logging activities communities identify.
Step four: advocacy to other stakeholders
These activities were focussed on local and
national levels. As part of the FPIC process,
CBOs helped communities to explore their
legal rights and responsibilities as
expressed in the Cameroonian Forest Act.
They used a range of tools including illustrated picture books, focus groups
discussions and oral presentations, focusing on the sections of the Forest Act most
relevant to ILCs.
Each CBO also organised a meeting to
present maps to local stakeholders including government representatives, other
CBOs and NGOs, forest managers and
interested parties. Communities presented
their work and contextualised illegal
logging in their area. Unfortunately, few
local authorities acted on the project’s
results. According to some CBOs and
communities this is because they are implicated in illegal logging, and felt accused
during the meetings. However, in one case,
local forestry authorities were so impressed
that they asked to keep the maps and work
more closely with the communities in the
future.
A national meeting was held with high
level forestry ministry officials, NGOs,
CBOs and international actors (British
High Commission). Three community
cartographers attended. They shared their
experiences and how the maps had better
informed them of what was going on in
their territories. The meeting was short,
but the ministry official welcomed the
project as an important way to engage
other parties in the FLEGT process.
Participants expressed the hope that the
system would become integral to the
Cameroonian timber traceability system,
and that the cartographers could become
important in liaising with their communities to elaborate REDD+ projects in
which Cameroon is increasingly engaging.9
Advocacy is ongoing through the project partners’ networks and the project
hopes to contribute to developing a replicable model of community-based
sustainable forest management in the
Congo Basin. The British High Commission in Yaoundé is committed to
maintaining a long-term engagement with
the Cameroonian government to act on
project outputs, as part of the VPA signed
between the EU and Cameroon to mark
their commitment to FLEGT.
Strengths and challenges
During local and regional meetings,
community cartographers were asked about
the project’s strengths and limitations at the
village level. This section is mainly based on
their analysis with special attention to FPIC
and community protocols.
9 Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD).
See: www.un-redd.org