Deforestation Impacts on Biodiversity Conservation in the Dja Biosphere Reserve of Cameroon

Abstract: Abstract The tropical rainforest of the world are very important for the global ecosystems. Most of the remaining rainforest in Africa is concentrated within the Congo Basin forest area. The Congo basin rainforest is second that of the Amazon basin and with the Indonesian forest are the most important rainforest in the world. The Dja Biosphere reserve which is located in the South Eastern part of Cameroon forms the upperparts of the Congo Basin Forest. Despite the fact that this area is a natural reserve implying that certain human activities like cutting down of forests around the buffer zones and hunting without permission are outlawed, we notice that there is increasing damage being done to this reserve especially around its periphery. The study aimed at examining the impact of deforestation activities on the Dja biosphere reserve to see if the exploitation is in a sustainable way or not. It also aimed at looking at the importance of the reserve to local communities who live around the area, the reasons for exploitation and the impacts, which stakeholders and what roles they play, and finally to find a better management strategy for the future. To be able to meet the objectives, the study was mostly analytical using carefully selected data to illustrate the problem and showed loopholes in policies. Suggestions for better management were made after looking at certain theories (Triple bottom line concept, Adaptive environmental planning, and Market instruments of Charge and Permit systems) and their possible applications. The study showed that the reserve was still 90% untouched but that some species were endangered even though none was critically under threat. It also showed that some species were conservation dependent and the reports of threats were increasing. Also, it was noticed that the reserve was very important to local populations not just as a means of subsistence but also as a way of increasing their household incomes. Recommendations are made with regards to the consideration for autonomous management, increase public participation in decision making and enforcement, and the creation of a special fund for collected charges from logging companies so that the funds can be used to increase conservation efforts. It is very necessary to increase conservation efforts as a precautionary step than to wait for the level of degradation to increase before taking action.