Douala-Edea Mangrove Management Plan Discussed

The government of Cameroon has restated its continuous readiness to assist in the sustainable management of the resources of the mangrove around the Douala-Edea Reserve that stretches from Tiko in the South West Region to Kribi in the South Region.

Speaking yesterday, January 10, 2013 at the Yaounde Mont Febe Hotel at a national workshop to endorse the management plan of the reserve's mangrove zone, the Secretary of State in the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife, Mrs. Koulsoumi Alhadji Boukar, said sustainable management of the mangrove ecosystem will also help to improve the livelihoods of community people.

According to Executive Secretary of the International Tropical Forest Organisation, Emmanuel Ze Meka, mangroves contain a lot of resources and offer protection against rising water levels as well as mitigating the effects of climate change. He said the management plan will help in ensuring the sustainable management of the area's resources through the proper coordination of different industrial and construction activities.

Explaining the raison d'être of the workshop, Mrs. Cécile Ndjebet, President of Cameroon Ecology - the charity implementing the project - pointed out that Cameroon does not yet have a specific legal framework for the management of mangroves. The workshop, she said, was therefore to help government develop such a legal framework as part of the ongoing revision of the country's forestry legislation.