Economie

Environmental Management, Forest Preservation: Cameroon-WWF Sign Revised MOU

Par Mary NKEMNGONG
11 Sep 2026 18:16
0 Likes

In a bid to reconcile wildlife conserva tion with human rights, the Govern ment of Cameroon and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) signed their third revised Memorandum of Unders tanding (MOU) yesterday September 10, 2026 in Yaounde. The updated agreement aims to solve a long-standing, volatile challenge in Cameroon and the Congo Basin at large in key conservation areas like forest resource management and cli mate action. According to the Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, Jules Doret Ndongo, “Cameroon's forests constitute a national asset of immense ecological and social value. As such, they must be preserved for future generations.” This, the Minister explained, includes wildlife conservation and the fight against poaching. He added that “the goal here is to strengthen the protec tion of endangered species, while ba lancing conservation with local deve lopment, through the building of strong institutions, the generation of reliable data, and the training of skilled per sonnel.” The revised strategic framework co vering a three-year span, would feature four priority areas including sustainable management of forest resources and climate action; conservation of wildlife and the management of computed areas as well as the fight against poa ching; the strengthening of gover nance, scientific research and institu tional capacity; and a deeper engage ment with local communities, through partnership and environmental edu cation. Edifying the forum on the relevance of collective action, WWF Country Di rector for Cameroon, Alain Bernard Ononino, expounded that, embedding strict social safeguards and legal access rights directly into the conservation framework through the WWF’s per manent residence paradigm, charges both local residents and conservators to be environmentally conscious. He further explained that since the WWF’s arrival in Cameroon in 1990, this revi sed MOU legally transforms local com munities from excluded bystanders into protected partners, testing a sca lable solution to the global friction between rural survival and environ mental defense, that sets a sustainable stage for cohabitation between human beings and wildlife.