Cameroon’s forests are among the most species-rich in the Congo basin, containing the region’s most biologically diverse forests, providing valuable habitat for endangered Western Lowland Gorillas, chimpanzees and forest elephants, amongst other species.
Unsustainable and illegal logging in these forests is leading to deforestation, destruction of the ecosystem and diminished resilience to climate change. Creation of roads by logging companies facilitates bushmeat hunting poses another key threat to Cameroon’s biodiversity, often preventing proper regeneration of logged forest habitats (Bikié et al., 2000).