Democracy And Environment

From the earliest recorded days, man has distinguished himself from the other living things. He can adapt to the jungle, the desert, or the ice cap. He has changed the land surface to suit his needs; he has dealt with some of the worst diseases and raised his life expectancy. He has even changed the genetic inheritance of some plants and animals for his food requirements and, apparently, he faces no serious challenge from any other animal. In short, he is the supreme predator enjoying the luxurious opportunities supplied by nature. A species in rapid expansion. But a predicament has been created in the course of human development. Man has enormously multiplied in his number and has greatly affected the environment of which he is a part. Likely changes to the environment, in any form, affect millions of human beings; how they live, where they live or whether they live at all. In a word, poverty. So, the main problem is the speed of poverty and its distribution in our environment, and how to deal with this problem politically. You will become aware of the impossibility of successfully fighting poverty and solving environmental problems in the absence of a democratic atmosphere.

First, here is the link between democracy, environment and poverty: the existence of selfish and ignorant people in positions of power, the quest to maintain a productive environment and individuals scrabbling to survive.

It is as clear as daylight that any development that degrades the environment degrades the people too. And, since rural communities now realize that the poor are bound to suffer most when environment is degraded, the indigenes must put environment first; they must have a vested interest in sustainable management of their natural resource base for their own survival and growth. This is simply to say that the natives must have access to productive employment and incomes in their own environment. Unfortunately, the importance of incentives is downplayed by ignorant, self-centered government agents when formulating programmes or policies of sustainable development. Some policy instruments like tax, pricing, prohibitions can work against sound environmental management if not properly framed and applied.

To formulate long-term goals, the (people) in power need to articulate a clear vision of the type of economic activities each region wants to evolve. The decision will have to involve local communities, the environment and development, and the outcome will have to be environmentally sustainable.

If the quality of the life of the people of underdeveloped countries is to improve, the policy-makers must subscribe to the principle of good governance and be prepared to take brave decisions about promoting alternative livelihoods for their people. One of the requirements for sustainable development is to have sufficiently developed institutional capacity and some devolution of authority. This will apply to formal government structures, legal and policy instruments, training capacity and informal institutions. For instance, the people of Buea are a people with close ties to the soil and to nature. As such, they cherish the natural environment. Therefore, prohibiting them from harnessing a livelihood from their natural environment is like hanging them to death from a tree branch. Frankly speaking, they have been made to understand the destructive effects of economic development pursued with little concern for the environment or for the needs of the majority of its inhabitants. So, it follows that people who find themselves in positions of power should reflect and accept that the local people are filled with a deep love for the soil and the natural world; and that they intend to stay close to their heritage, close to the soil and in a sustainable relationship with their land. But, if they (powerful) men and women trammel the rapport between man and environment by making useless restrictive decisions, then the pride and wonder that fill the locals, the enormous responsibility to preserve a local biodiversity matched only by a few other areas in the world, shall wan off and degenerate into a contemptuous devastation of the natural environment.

People in power should realize full well that the environmental challenges of the modern world extend far beyond the outlook of money-making enterprises, the survival of single species and the well-being of nature, into the impact of the ravages of desertification, pollution in all its forms, deforestation, global climate change, as well as social instability, and war on the quality of the life of the people.

The crises of global poverty, population pressures and underdevelopment demand innovative solutions, not prohibitive decisions from people in power. Cameroon, like any other country, faces the same challenges as are faced elsewhere. At the top of the agenda therefore, must be the people and the environment – ensuring that every person is within easy reach of necessities; water, shelter, food, security. Access to sanitation services and energy is high on the list of priorities. Meeting these demands will also ease man’s impact on the environment. Thus, tasks should be set up to meet the basic needs of everyone in Cameroon, especially the poorest of the people, to develop human resources, to build the economy and to democratize the society in order to treat environment with the respect it deserves.

With the establishment of a democratic system upholding equity, equality, access, accountability and transparency and sustainable living, these being the tenets of a basic democratic atmosphere, the conditions for successfully implementing policies of integrated environmental management are propitious. The deep understanding for the environment which is inscribed in the experience of those whose lives and well-being depend on it will be tapped.

So, active involvement of communities in the management of their environment must be the order of the day. The government and the people of this beautiful land should share the concern of the global community for a healthy and productive environment, and for the health of Planet Earth. Only policies which strive to promote sustainable development, peace, human security and dignity should be thought of and reached.