This article is featured in the December 2024 GSEF Newsletter. If you would like to highlight a SSE initiative in your area, please contact the GSEF Secretariat: gsef@gsef-net.org.

Ms. Monique Ayi, Mayor of Dzeng in Cameroon and President of REMCESS (Network of Cameroonian Mayors for the Social and Solidarity Economy), a member of the GSEF Steering Committee, shared her experience of the innovative and responsible community management of the Dzeng communal forest.

The context: a workshop on Corporate Territorial Responsibility (RTE, Responsabilité Territoriale des Entreprises) organized during a meeting of the Economic Transitions Commission of the International Association of French-Speaking Mayors (AIMF), held in Bordeaux in the fall of 2024.

Testimonial

It is with great pleasure that I address you today to share the progress and challenges of a company's commitment to territorial responsibility. This testimonial is based on our collaboration with a company involved in logging in the Commune of Dzeng.

Since the beginning of our partnership with this logging company, we have put in place a governance model that promotes not only economic development, but also the preservation of our environment and the well-being of our people. Each month, the logger proceeds to cut the timber, a process rigorously governed by the laws in force in Cameroon. These include the 1994 law governing forests, wildlife and fisheries, and the 1996 law on environmental management, which establishes a political and strategic framework based on the following principles, among others:

• sustainable forest management ;
• contribution to economic growth and poverty reduction ;
• participatory management ;
• biodiversity conservation through a national/communal network of protected areas;
• strengthening the public sector in its core functions.

The revenues collected by the City Council are rapidly reinvested in projects that respond to the priorities of our territory, on the basis of a Communal Development Plan accompanied by an annual operational planning of projects approved by the City Council in the presence of members of the Communal Committee invited as observers.  Whether it's the opening of roads, the creation of playgrounds for our young people, or the purchase of sports equipment.

One of the most gratifying aspects of this project is the Commune's commitment to local employment. We have required the operator to recruit 80% of workers (cubers, harvesters, handlers, etc.) locally. This not only generates income for families, but also stimulates our local economy and the development of the social economy. Every salary paid contributes to the vitality of our Commune.

The Commune has also taken strict measures to ensure that forestry operations respect our biodiversity. Our forest wardens, who come from local communities and are incorporated as social economy enterprises, are accountable to both the Commune and the local population. They play an essential role in ensuring that biodiversity and protected species are preserved, and that authorized harvesting areas and cubes are respected. Their collaboration with the Commune ensures that the area's natural resources are preserved for future generations.

On the social front, our partnership doesn't stop at timber harvesting. With the company, we have initiated essential projects such as the construction of water points that are managed by cooperatives and local water management committees to ensure their sustainability. The company also distributes solar kits to local residents, in line with the needs expressed by the latter and contained in the specifications. These actions help to improve the quality of life of our fellow citizens and strengthen our social fabric.

However, we are aware of the challenges that lie ahead. We need to strengthen the management of our communal forests and encourage social economy initiatives. This is essential if we are to maintain our biodiversity, consolidate local governance and create jobs that cannot be relocated, while combating rural exodus and illegal emigration, which particularly affect our young people. Our objective is clear: to create social and solidarity economy businesses to offer every young person prospects for a better future in the community.

As mayor, I rigorously follow the specifications drawn up with the logging company, in order to guarantee good forest governance in line with our communal development plan. This in turn is aligned with Cameroon's National Development Strategy (SND30), enabling us to contribute actively to our collective vision for the future and to territorial development based on locally-based businesses.

Through Corporate Territorial Responsibility (RTE), Communes have the power to transform their municipalities, to continue to work towards sustainable development that respects their environments and benefits all of them.

More about Corporate Territorial Responsibility (RTE): https://www.cress-na.org/publication/livre-blanc-la-responsabilite-territoriale-de-lentreprise-rte/