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Bars to Jars: Bamboo Value Chains in Cameroon

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Abstract

Bamboo is a well know and versatile material, which is a common sight across Cameroon's diverse ecosystems, from dry to humid tropical and Afromontane forests. Its numerous uses range from storage jars to decorating restaurant-bars, beehives to knives, fences, fodder, and fuel. Responding to the paucity of data on species and uses, the value chain for bamboo in Cameroon was analyzed. Based on 171 interviews and field observations, two African indigenous species (alpine Yushania alpina and savannah Oxytenanthera abyssinica) and exotic (Bambusa vulgaris spp.) bamboos were identified as most utilized. They were tracked from major production zones to final consumers. The ecological, socio-economic, institutional, and governance contexts and impacts are described and analyzed. Issues for research, conservation, and development are highlighted. These include the ambiguous regulatory status, the relationship between tenure and management, threats and conservation of African species and options to increase the sustainable livelihoods for stakeholders dependent upon bamboo.

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Notes

  1. Informal denotes commercial operations not registered as enterprises, or with the Chamber of Commerce or MINSME.

  2. Current income data for Cameroon is lacking (International Monetary Fund 2008). 1988 data indicates average household incomes of 152 000 FCFA, varying from 454 000 in Yaoundé, 380 000 in Douala, 160 600 in peri-urban areas in the south and 104 200 FCFA for a household of 6–9 people (Lynch 1991).

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by INBAR (as part of the project “Enhancing Opportunities for Market-Led Bamboo and Rattan-based Development in West and Central Africa” financed by the Common Fund for Commodities) and CIFOR and resulted in a working paper (see http://www.inbar.int/publication/PDF/WP66_web.pdf). Andrew Benton and Michael Kwaku (INBAR) provided technical support. Terry Sunderland, Jolien Schure, Patrice Levang, Nick Hogarth, Abdon Awono and Manuel Ruiz-Perez (CIFOR) are thanked for their contributions and reviews. We are grateful to ANAFOR, particularly Desire Tole; MINFOF, especially Paul Wamba; Ousseynou Ndoye, Tropenbos International, MOCAP, Ferrudjal and all the traditional authorities, enterprises, harvesters, craftpersons, retailers, and consumers which participated in the study. We are grateful to three anonymous reviewers for their very helpful comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), BP 2008, Messa, Yaoundé, Cameroon

    Verina Ingram

  2. Bioversity International, BP 2008, Messa, Yaoundé, Cameroon

    Julius Chupezi Tieguhong

  3. LEI, University of Wageningen and Research Centres, P.O. Box 29703, 2502 LS, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Verina Ingram

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Correspondence to Verina Ingram.

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Ingram, V., Tieguhong, J.C. Bars to Jars: Bamboo Value Chains in Cameroon. AMBIO 42, 320–333 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-012-0347-5

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