ABSTRACT

Land is a vital resource that human beings need for sustenance.[1] Issues of access and control of the resource have been a contentious and perennial problem in Cameroon at the community level[2]. Indeed, the certainty of who controls national lands in Cameroon is an issue of concern as most publications claim that 97% of land belongs to the State. However, distinctions should be made between state ownership of public land and state administration of national lands which really belongs to the Cameroonian people or nation. The current legal status granting sole and absolute powers to the State as a custodian of national lands no longer meets local communities’ and indigenous people’s claims over lands inherited from forefathers. Hence, there is a need to initiate policy and legal reforms so as to provide for land belonging to local communities and indigenous communities, distinct from national lands domain. Indeed, admittedly, the land tenure system in force in Cameroon since 1974 does not provide for customary land ownership. The main objective of this work is to examine how national land is managed in Cameroon. To this end, the researcher adopts the qualitative methodology which makes use of the doctrinal research method which relies on content analysis of both primary and secondary sources of data.The research thus finds out that Land titles are the only legal means of land holdings rights (once the land is not titled, it is classified as national land), and in the early 2000s, less than 2% of the land in Cameroon was registered or titled according to the ministry of state property and land tenure Government should try as much as possible to relax control over national land.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

• INTRODUCTION

The Management of National Lands in Cameroon involves the administration and regulation of Land resources within the Country’s borders. Cameroon, located in central Africa, is known for its rich biodiversity and diverse ecosystems, including forests, savannas and coastal areas. The Management of National Lands aims to ensure sustainable use, conservation and equitable distribution of their resources.

          The responsibility for managing National Lands in Cameroon lies primarily within the Ministry of forestry and wildlife, which oversees the country’s forest and wildlife resources. The ministry is support by various government agencies and local authorities involved in Land administration, conservation and development.

          Key aspects of the Management of National Lands in Cameroon include; Land Tenure, Land use planning, Forest Management, wildlife conservation and community engagement.

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Land is a vital resource that human beings need for sustenance.[1] Issues of access and control of the resource have been a contentious and perennial problem in Cameroon at the community level[2]. Indeed, the certainty of who controls national lands in Cameroon is an issue of concern as most publications claim that 97% of land belongs to the State. However, distinctions should be made between state ownership of public land and state administration of national lands which really belongs to the Cameroonian people or nation.

Land titles are the only legal means of land holdings rights (once the land is not titled, it is classified as national land). In the early 2000s, however, less than 2% of the land in Cameroon was registered or titled according to the ministry of state property and land tenure (MINDAS). Today, most lands are still held informally and managed through local tenure agreement. These local agreements are a combination of statutory and customary tenure rules^1. This formed a complex; locally specific and sometimes malleable set of rules that creates uncertainty fosters land conflict and hampers local development.[3] In Cameroon as in many African Countries, women daily endure practices that could be considered discriminatory in various areas of society, and especially related to land ownership. Since the president of Cameroon announced the launch of reforms at the Agro pastoral assembly on January 17 2011, the issue of land tenure has been at the center of debate in Cameroon. Even more central is the issue of the management of national lands.

According to the land legislation in force in Cameroon, land owned by the State, including other legal persons established in the public interest, and comprises private and public land of the State. Other types of lands that constitute the subject of debate rather fall under the category, national lands.

Following the era of German rule in Cameroon, in 1884, the Gronland Act of 1896 was passed which established that, all lands except those occupied by the chiefs and their communities where declared herrenloss lands and so, assimilated as part of the German’s oversees dominion. By this therefore, the government appropriated all lands not so defined as private or native land which they did not own hither to decree, into Kronland. All these appropriated lands buy German governments where sold to German planters.

The Kronland Act of 1896 has always been regarded as a fore runner of the 1974 Land Tenure Ordinance. This is so because it set the stage for land registration in Cameroon with the introduction of the Grunbush. It provided certainty of title; an insurance which the chiefs could not provide.

Land as a resource is very vital in Cameroon, especially as over 80% of the population and more particularly 80-85% of women depend on it for their livelihood. It is equally the only resource that could offer direct returns to peasants both in urban and rural areas. Land as a resource is limited in terms of supply, quality and accesses due to nature of its acquisition/exploitation and ownership in Cameroon. Institutional (government legal policy/implementation) and traditional policies render its access and ownership difficult. The situation is more precarious in some divisions like in Fako, where concessions were obtained by plantation companies over a greater part of the southeastern, southern and south western slopes of the Cameroon Mountain, leaving very limited land for indigenous population[4].

Historically, when Britain and France took over the administration of Cameroon in 1922, Britain prompted to rule her own part of Cameroon through Nigeria and so, the land tenure legislation in Nigeria then was applied in Cameroon.

The Land and Native Rights Ordinance N^o 1, 1996 was rendered applicable to southern Cameroon in 1927 by the British Cameroon Administration Ordinance N^o 1, 1927. In applying this law, Britain occupancy: a system that rendered all lands in the mandate territory as native lands over which na’s excised only rights of occupancy and not ownership. The ordinance was intended to assure, protect and preserve the interest of customary rights and defined the rights and obligations of governments and other persons claiming to have an interest in land in the territory.

 No occupation or use of such land was valid without the Governors concern. Therefore, non-natives who bought lands with the Governors concern where given certificates of occupancy. These certificates were treated as documents of titles. This led the natives to believe that this was more secured than their rights and so cause a lot of them to seek the certificate of occupancy.

The certificate is defined in Fayez Olabi and TonfigOlabi v. Sam Ehodo (CA swp/1973) by Gwanmecia J as a lease of 99 years during which the holder pays rents to the Government on Government laws.[5]