Abstract
In Central Africa, trophy hunting constitutes an incentive-based approach for sustainable wildlife management. We collected data from the wildlife administration, safari hunting enterprises and local wildlife management committees, to provide an order of magnitude of the financial performance of this sector in Cameroon. In 2012, trophy hunting was likely to generate an annual turnover of epsilon 7.5 million and its added value could amount to only 0.0001% of GDP although these hunting zones cover 12% of the national territory. The profit margin for professional guides had become negative, with a net annual profit around epsilon -0.7 million. The severe crisis in the trophy hunting sector is mainly due to an increase in the management costs of the hunting zones and the diminishing price of hunting safaris. The State plays a crucial role in enhancing the financial attractiveness of trophy hunting by the restoration of security in the Northern region and by technical measures to (1) clarify the allocation process for hunting areas, (2) simplify regulations and (3) establish an incentives system for law enforcement at national and local levels.
Highlights
Wildlife conservation takes various forms, from exclusionary national parks to community-managed ecosystems
The national park is the oldest model in Central Africa for formally organizing the conservation of nature
The objective of protecting iconic species and landscapes justified the creation of the first national park – the Virunga national park – in 1925 and of most parks throughout the twentieth century in Central Africa (Devers and Vande weghe 2007)
Summary
Wildlife conservation takes various forms, from exclusionary national parks to community-managed ecosystems. The objective of protecting iconic species and landscapes justified the creation of the first national park – the Virunga national park – in 1925 and of most parks throughout the twentieth century in Central Africa (Devers and Vande weghe 2007). They were created by the States with little regard to the interests of local communities. Classic applications of such top-down conservation strategies in Central Africa have been widely contested due to their impact on the social and economic condition of communities and their limited contribution to the protection of natural resources (Cernea and Schmidt-Soltau 2006, Njiforti and Tchamba 1993)
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