Rethinking Environmental Movements In Developing Nations: The Case Of Cameroon

Conventional wisdom holds that citizens of developing nations rarely participate in movements similar to the “mainstream” environmental movements of the developed world. Instead, like dispossessed groups in developed countries, their mobilization generally takes the form of locally based, confrontational responses to direct threats to their livelihoods and health. A large literature examines such movements, but it generally ignores developing nations where such mobilization is infrequent. This paper examines the case of Cameroon, where mobilization of large numbers of citizens for confrontation with government or business interests over environmental issues has been limited and infrequent. Our data come from an extensive literature search and interviews with 52 NGO leaders from five of Cameroon’s ten regions. We conclude that the relative absence of large scale, clear, and immediate threats to the livelihoods or health of large numbers of citizens, in combination with a resilient, quasi-authoritarian government characterized by patronage, divide and conquer strategies, and mild repression, have mitigated against such movements. Cameroon does, however,  possess scores of NGOs and citizens’ groups that address environmental problems through lobbying, public education, and concrete projects to protect the environment. Although they lack a mass support base, they do enjoy significant support. Their accomplishments are real, especially in relation to the obstacles they face; however, they are severely limited by lack of funds, expertise, and equipment. Factors cited above, combined with heavy reliance by the most successful NGOs on funding from international environmental NGOs and international aid agencies, predispose them to avoid confrontation, and only a few engage in it. Our findings suggest that conventional wisdom about environmental movements in developing countries represents a considerable oversimplification and that environmental action can assume diverse forms in developing nations. It also raises important questions about how environmental movements are to be defined, which we explore in the conclusion.