The rate of forest clearing by small farmers in the humid forest zone (HFZ) of Cameroon increased significantly in a period of economic crisis dating from 1986. A random sample survey of 648 households was conducted in 54 villages in the HFZ to understand the effect of the crisis and of a 1996 currency devaluation on the practices of small farmers, and the effect of these practices on forest cover change.

Popular concern about tropical deforestation largely drove the rapid growth in forestry assistance in recent years. Nevertheless, forestry assistance has had limited impact on forest clearing and much of it has gone to address other problems. To reduce inappropriate deforestation requires a combination of a multi-sectoral approach, greater regulation, and payment for environmental services. Aid officials have been partially unwilling and partially unable to adopt these approaches.

A sample survey of 648 households was conducted in 54 villages in the humid forest zone of Cameroon to understand the effect of the economic crisis (dating from 1986) and the 1994 currency devaluation on the practices of small farmers, and the effect of these practices on forest cover change. Four hypotheses were tested concerning: the balance between plantation crop and food crop production; the degree of market-orientation of food crop production; the gender division of labour; and the degree of dependence on non-timber forest products (NTFPs).

Loggers, miners and rural communities all exploit forests in unsustainable ways in search of profits and means of subsistence. They are the primary actors in forest decline and their immediate motivations are the direct causes of deforestation and degradation. However, these motivations are determined, through complex causation chains, by deeper and much more fundamental forces: the underlying causes of deforestation. Effective action against forest decline requires an understanding of these underlying causes and their distant impacts on forests.

The analysis of `ambiguous lands' and the people who inhabit them is most revealing for understanding environmental deterioration in Thailand. `Ambiguous lands' are those which are legally owned by the state, but are used and cultivated by local people. Land with an ambiguous property status attracts many different actors: villagers hungry for unoccupied arable lands in the frontiers; government departments looking for new project sites; and conservation agencies searching for new areas to be protected.

Preliminary findings on the effects of land use in the Masinga Dam catchment, Kenya, on the storage capacity of the reservoir are presented. Remote sensing and GIS techniques, supplemented with ground reports, were used to determine areas most susceptible to erosion. A representative catchment was then chosen for rainy season monitoring of soil loss, river suspended sediments and discharge response to rainfall. In addition, Gerlach-type traps were used to evaluate erosion rates under different crop covers and slope gradients.

Characterizing soil erosion hazard and its spatial variability is critical for maintaining
user confidence in planning soil- and water- conservation programmes and general
land-use management. Predicting the average rates of soil erosion for a combination
of specific soil and land-use types is vital. This is because such predictions form a
basis for providing guidelines for effective erosion control.
The purpose of this investigation was to examine the erosion effects of alternative

This issue of Caravan chronicles ICARDA’s efforts in developing a research strategy and a need-based research program for the CAC region. In doing so, ICARDA played a major role in bringing together all partners, most importantly donors. The article on page 8 traces the history of this effort and provides an overview of the current status of collaboration.