Agro-pastoral activities and environmental degradation in Boyo Division, North West region – Cameroon

Abstract

Agro-pastoralism is a vital activity in Cameroons economy. It is the main economic booster in Boyo Division as the number of people involved in this sector keeps increasing. Agro-pastoral activities provide employment to the local population and its end product (meat) provide nutrients necessary for the growth and maintenance of the human system. Notwithstanding, the growth of agro-pastoral activities in Boyo is at the detriment of environmental protection as some of the methods and technics used by crop farmers and pastoralists are rather agents of environmental damage. Besides environmental degradation such as water, air and land pollution caused by agro-pastoral activities, the sector is equally faced with a series of challenges ranging from crop failure and diseases. This work seeks to investigate the effects of agro-pastoral activities in Boyo Division. Three hypotheses were constructed to guide this study. The collection, processing and analysis of data necessary for this study was done through the adoption of feasible research methods and technics. Data was gotten from the review of published and unpublished documents and internet sources, field surveys and questionnaire. Responses were gotten from 129 respondents from 16 villages selected from all the four sub-Divisions that make up the study area. Data was also collected through focus group discussions, interviews and direct field observations. The verification of hypotheses for this study was done through inferential and non-inferential analysis, from where conclusions, suggestions and policy implementations were drawn. The analysis and interpretation of the collected data revealed that some methods of preparing the soil for crop cultivation such as the slash and burn and the spraying methods negatively affect the environment (table 7 and plate 2). The study equally portrayed livestock rearing as the major form of pastoral activity in Boyo with a total of 42% leaving behind negative footprints such as biodiversity lost, ecological pollution and savanisation. Methods such as extensive animal rearing (29%), small holder mixed farming in small nearby farms (49%) and small- scale ranching within the compound (22%). As concerns land conversion for the expansion of agro-pastoral activities, the study revealed that there has been a remarkable increase in the population of the study area and it’s surrounding (plate 5) leading to the conversion of conservation land to accommodate the expansion of agro-pastoral activities. This has further aggravated the environmental conditions as there is continuous encroachment into forested land (plate 7) and changes in land use patterns as well as traditional agricultural patterns to techniques such as the slash and burn method of cultivation all in an attempt to increase output over a short period and also accommodate the increasing demand for land.