The tourism industry is playing an increasingly important role in the global economy, contributing 5 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 30 percent of service exports and 235 million jobs. In the world today, ecotourism has become a significant component in the lexicon of international development policy and assistance, referred to routinely as a potential new source of income for any area with a scenic landscape, whether natural or cultural. The North West Region of Cameroon is one of the most spectacular ecotourism destinations in the country and can be termed as an ecotourism cornucopia because of her richness in floral and faunal biodiversity, juxtaposed with beautiful undulating terrain, mountain, hills, caves, forests, water falls, lakes as well as an amazing cultural diversity. The main objective of this study was to identify and survey the ecotourism potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon. Data were obtained mostly through field survey though the use of questionnaires and focus group discussions were also employed. Also, secondary data sources were made used of. The data were analysed using SPSS Version 21 statistical package to produce simple charts for the interpretation of each of the sections in the questionnaires answered. The Microsoft Excel package was used to produce simple modules. The topographic map was drawn using Map Info. Pictures were edited and organized using Canon picture softwares, Zoombrowser and Photorecord respectively. Results revealed that the North West Region is endowed with 112 physical ecotourism potentials with Mezam Division having the highest number (33) followed by Bui Division with 19 ecotourism potentials while Menchum Division has the least with 8 ecotourism potentials. It is also within the North West Region that we find Mount Oku, the famous Oku Montane Forest which is a biodiversity hotspot covering some 20,000 hectares, offering floristic richness, endemic birds, and unique monkeys. Most of these potentials have not been developed largely due to inaccessibility constraints. Results also revealed that there are 10 active cultural festivals that occur in the region every year. Meanwhile, there has been the continuous development of the cultural potentials in all the divisions in the region because culture is part and parcel of a ‘Grassfield man’. This study therefore recommends a win win partnership between the government and the local councils through the new law on decentralization so as to ensure the constructions and maintenance of efficient road network to these ecotourism sites.
| Published in | Earth Sciences (Volume 11, Issue 5) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12 |
| Page(s) | 250-259 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Assessment, Ecotourism, Ecotourism Potentials, Biodiversity, North West Region
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APA Style
Fonge Beatrice Ambo, Nfor Frederick, Tabrey Hans Tata, Enoh Christly Anyi-Nju. (2022). Assessment of Ecotourism Potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon. Earth Sciences, 11(5), 250-259. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12
ACS Style
Fonge Beatrice Ambo; Nfor Frederick; Tabrey Hans Tata; Enoh Christly Anyi-Nju. Assessment of Ecotourism Potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon. Earth Sci. 2022, 11(5), 250-259. doi: 10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12
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author = {Fonge Beatrice Ambo and Nfor Frederick and Tabrey Hans Tata and Enoh Christly Anyi-Nju},
title = {Assessment of Ecotourism Potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon},
journal = {Earth Sciences},
volume = {11},
number = {5},
pages = {250-259},
doi = {10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.earth.20221105.12},
abstract = {The tourism industry is playing an increasingly important role in the global economy, contributing 5 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 30 percent of service exports and 235 million jobs. In the world today, ecotourism has become a significant component in the lexicon of international development policy and assistance, referred to routinely as a potential new source of income for any area with a scenic landscape, whether natural or cultural. The North West Region of Cameroon is one of the most spectacular ecotourism destinations in the country and can be termed as an ecotourism cornucopia because of her richness in floral and faunal biodiversity, juxtaposed with beautiful undulating terrain, mountain, hills, caves, forests, water falls, lakes as well as an amazing cultural diversity. The main objective of this study was to identify and survey the ecotourism potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon. Data were obtained mostly through field survey though the use of questionnaires and focus group discussions were also employed. Also, secondary data sources were made used of. The data were analysed using SPSS Version 21 statistical package to produce simple charts for the interpretation of each of the sections in the questionnaires answered. The Microsoft Excel package was used to produce simple modules. The topographic map was drawn using Map Info. Pictures were edited and organized using Canon picture softwares, Zoombrowser and Photorecord respectively. Results revealed that the North West Region is endowed with 112 physical ecotourism potentials with Mezam Division having the highest number (33) followed by Bui Division with 19 ecotourism potentials while Menchum Division has the least with 8 ecotourism potentials. It is also within the North West Region that we find Mount Oku, the famous Oku Montane Forest which is a biodiversity hotspot covering some 20,000 hectares, offering floristic richness, endemic birds, and unique monkeys. Most of these potentials have not been developed largely due to inaccessibility constraints. Results also revealed that there are 10 active cultural festivals that occur in the region every year. Meanwhile, there has been the continuous development of the cultural potentials in all the divisions in the region because culture is part and parcel of a ‘Grassfield man’. This study therefore recommends a win win partnership between the government and the local councils through the new law on decentralization so as to ensure the constructions and maintenance of efficient road network to these ecotourism sites.},
year = {2022}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Assessment of Ecotourism Potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon AU - Fonge Beatrice Ambo AU - Nfor Frederick AU - Tabrey Hans Tata AU - Enoh Christly Anyi-Nju Y1 - 2022/09/08 PY - 2022 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12 DO - 10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12 T2 - Earth Sciences JF - Earth Sciences JO - Earth Sciences SP - 250 EP - 259 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2328-5982 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.earth.20221105.12 AB - The tourism industry is playing an increasingly important role in the global economy, contributing 5 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 30 percent of service exports and 235 million jobs. In the world today, ecotourism has become a significant component in the lexicon of international development policy and assistance, referred to routinely as a potential new source of income for any area with a scenic landscape, whether natural or cultural. The North West Region of Cameroon is one of the most spectacular ecotourism destinations in the country and can be termed as an ecotourism cornucopia because of her richness in floral and faunal biodiversity, juxtaposed with beautiful undulating terrain, mountain, hills, caves, forests, water falls, lakes as well as an amazing cultural diversity. The main objective of this study was to identify and survey the ecotourism potentials in the North West Region of Cameroon. Data were obtained mostly through field survey though the use of questionnaires and focus group discussions were also employed. Also, secondary data sources were made used of. The data were analysed using SPSS Version 21 statistical package to produce simple charts for the interpretation of each of the sections in the questionnaires answered. The Microsoft Excel package was used to produce simple modules. The topographic map was drawn using Map Info. Pictures were edited and organized using Canon picture softwares, Zoombrowser and Photorecord respectively. Results revealed that the North West Region is endowed with 112 physical ecotourism potentials with Mezam Division having the highest number (33) followed by Bui Division with 19 ecotourism potentials while Menchum Division has the least with 8 ecotourism potentials. It is also within the North West Region that we find Mount Oku, the famous Oku Montane Forest which is a biodiversity hotspot covering some 20,000 hectares, offering floristic richness, endemic birds, and unique monkeys. Most of these potentials have not been developed largely due to inaccessibility constraints. Results also revealed that there are 10 active cultural festivals that occur in the region every year. Meanwhile, there has been the continuous development of the cultural potentials in all the divisions in the region because culture is part and parcel of a ‘Grassfield man’. This study therefore recommends a win win partnership between the government and the local councils through the new law on decentralization so as to ensure the constructions and maintenance of efficient road network to these ecotourism sites. VL - 11 IS - 5 ER -
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