Political economy of forestland grabbing by Elites in the Congo Basin: assessing the socioeconomic and environmental drawbacks from Cameroon, Gabon and Congo

Abstract (English)

Forest land grabbing is an important factor of deforestation and loss of biodiversity in Latin America, South-East Asia and Africa. In the Congo Basin rainforest, this phenomenon is facilitated by the fact that exploitable land is not secured. In addition, the legal frameworks in place, mainly in Cameroon, Gabon and Congo, do not sufficiently protect peasant populations. This article’s main objective is to assess the socioeconomic and ecological drawbacks of forestland grabbing by national elites in these countries. From mixed social science research methods and an identification of biodiversity species loss in converted forestlands in comparison to unconverted lands, the results of this research demonstrate that forest land grabbing and conversion has economic consequences on the riparian’s life condition. For, they are dispossessed from the main resource of their socioeconomic activities and income and have no alternative. This is a cause to joblessness and rural delinquency and alcoholism on the one hand and inter-family conflicts on the other hand. From the ecological perspective, forest land grabbing and conversion has as consequences the loss of biodiversity species, both animal and vegetal. From the social and anthropological point of view, there is a loss of indigenous knowledges relating to forest tree species and animals. In the years to come, community members wouldn’t be able to identify current common flora species of their local forest.