Political ecology and the National show in 3 weeks!

Yesterday while running on my road that was, not long ago, a two-track road so muddy it was impassible by anything but moto, and is now a two-lane paved road with an improved bridge, I considered some of the impacts of the National Agro-Pastoral Show (Comice) on my village/Ebolowa. While there is no way to know how things are going to turn out, the political ecologist in me has become increasing good at using the hatchet to break down the problem. Here goes my best effort. Keep in mind this is completely speculative.

Environmental: The most obvious problem to any environmentalist is…. er…. environmental. We are talking about oil spills on the roads that often spill into the rivers, the wetlands, run off onto farms, and get tracked into my house. We are also talking about air pollution. I decided that until this whole thing is over, I can no longer afford to run because it seriously burns the lungs. This is probably compounded because of the fact that the air in the rainforest is relatively stagnant, and the humidity traps the gross stuff until it finally rains. These two compounded with building of permanent roads, of course, have major impacts on wildlife. So long, African Grey Parrot! And who can forget… CEMENT! Cameroonians LOVE cement. Now we aren’t talking about a healthy relationship. We are talking about a refusal to use wood or mud (materials that are a. local, b. readily available, c. quick to use, d. durable) because cement is more expensive and imported. Does this mean that it is better quality? I can tell you from personal experience that cement here is really poor quality. The blocks fall apart easily possibly because they have to dry in the sun (we are now in the rainy season) which isn’t very strong to begin with, as there is lots of tree cover. This is probably also due to the fact that the cement is low grade quality, imported from China. I can’t even begin to discuss the environmental factors there… And finally… the clearing of the land to build houses and other structures. I guess we can’t debate the merits of development, but perhaps we could start to talk about a little something called city planning. Yes, this is a relatively new field of study, but Cameroon is getting fiber optic internet. Maybe someone could have looked this up. Specifically the idea that building up is often times better than building out. Especially in one of the last remaining tropical rainforests of the world.

Jobs: There has been a huge increase in the availability of jobs due to construction of the roads, hotels, houses, anything you can think of. Unfortunately, most of these jobs are going to people from other regions. I guess this can only be blamed on the Bulu people’s far too-often confirmed reputation for laziness. While there are some local people who are benefiting from jobs (we are talking mommas who realize the possibility to sell food, the few men who don’t bitch about manual labor, existing businesses, villagers who can sell bushmeat at exorbitant prices, and, of course, bars and the Brasserie), most of the workers are imported. Also, many of the businesses that existed pre-comice have been razed to make room for “better” structures, classier joints, that will likely never be built. This not only includes formal structures, but things like the fripperie/flea market, the regular food market, and random other stuff that I used to be about to locate. Now, for example, I have no idea where to get my stove fixed. My breakdown of jobs also includes the sale of sex. I feel only slight hesitation to lump this in here, but women of the night… uhhh prostitutes… are certainly getting good business. We are not talking exclusively about formal prostitution because I would say that most of the prostitution I see is rather informal. Ca va dire, women want money, so women accept all sorts of presents and may even become a sort of “copine” for her sugar daddy (likely married) who is here only for a short while. So, as long as they protect themselves, keep up the good work. If not, I will expand this to include STIs and HIV/AIDS. Which I guess could fall into health care work? And then this all will likely be compounded during the weeklong event of the comice. This also means that I get to accuse everybody who asks me for money of being lazy and uncreative. (Is there any question that Cameroon has made me more sympathetic?)

Food security: Where to begin? Baton de manioc, one of the staples of the South, has doubled in price in town. My postmate used to buy a large sack of garlic at 2.000, and she recently reported the cost at 3.500. All kinds of food has become harder to find and much more expensive. This is because more people are buying and many of the food markets have been torn down. I have no way to know what the situation will be in the time leading up to the Comice, but it is certain that many, many people will be coming into Ebolowa from other regions, from Gabon, Eq. Guinea, and probably from European countries to buy food. So anyone who knows the basic rules of economics knows that when the demand increases, the price can, too, if the supply hasn’t. And trust me, it hasn’t. Subsidies were given so tardy to local producers that I am even skeptical that the people who received them will be able to harvest before the Comice. Like, for example, the plantain rejets that were given to the farms surrounding the field for the Comice. A plantain takes 1 year to maturity, which means in approximately 10 months I will be eating lots of cheap plantains. Not into time, clearly, for the Comice. Assuming that people will get fed up with the South, or that the government will start stealing money again and development will come to a screeching halt, this is good news for life post-Comice.

Security and well-being: Everyone knows that when a city doubles in size in a matter of months (or a week), the poor become poorer, people become disillusioned, people see quick opportunities, and crime becomes a major problem. The Bulu tell me that the only crimes committed in Bulu-land are committed by people from other regions, usually the West and the NW. I am not certain of the reliability of that data, but I am going to guess that crime will become an increasing problem, particularly during the Comice itself. This may be rapes, robberies, or break-ins, and it will likely be committed by everyone. Fortunately there are now street lights by my house, so assuming that the electricity is not cut for the week, I should hopefully be good to go. On my early am walk home the other day, however, I realized that some of the houses that were half-torn down to make room for road expansion are still inhabited. That can not be good for city-wide security or well-being.

White people: WOW! There are so many white people here now. I guess this is especially strange because before I knew all of us, and I could count us on two hands. I saw 2 new ones yesterday, and 3 driving around in a fancy SUV the day before. Recently I have been called a tourist, and yesterday some crazy lady accused the Comice of being a white person thing. Ahh… really?

And prison: It is likely that some grands who have been linked to stealing Comice cash for the past 20 years will spend some of their near future in jail. I’m not totally clear on how this will work specifically because of the impending election, but I am guessing that unless the grands are able to buy off a lot of people, they will be forced to watch television and sit on cushy chairs and drink wine from inside the prison walls. At least until the elections are over. Talk about justice.

This is my oh-so-scientific synopsis of some of the major problems/opportunities that are currently happening around me. To take a political ecology lens is always difficult: not because it is hard to use the hatchet (anyone who knows me know I am good at finding the problems), but because it is hard to plant a seed (because I am uncreative maybe?). So, on my next run I hope to process some of this and find the seed amongst all the litter. But likely not.

Cacao

Life changes fast! One minute, you’re waiting for the pavement trucks to come and lay down the pavement, and the next you’re watching technicians setting up street lights to line your street, much like foresters reforest an area with a neat and orderly grid of trees.

This post will not focus on the rapid changes to my village (a hospital, a community well, and did I mention street lights?), but will focus, instead, on my counterpart Serges. Serges works his father’s cacao field every year. This year he bought fungicides for the trees with money he borrowed from his village saving group. He worked the field doing all the necessary preparation work, including cutting down the weeds, applying fungicides, monitoring the cacao pods in their development, and harvesting the pods and cutting them open to ferment the interior. The first harvest/fermenting process occurred 2 Thursdays ago. Since he had the opportunity to come with me to Lolodorf for a seminar, he left home last Sunday, just a few days after the harvest. When he returned home 3 days later, he found out that his dad sold all of the cacao they harvested (which, in his hurry, was not yet even dry) and spent or hid all of the money! This means that the 400 or so dollars that Serges expected to come to him will never come, and on top of it all, he still has to pay back the village saving group the fungicide money.

While I complain about how dishonest some people are here, I can not even imagine what it would mean to have my own father steal from me and lie to me and my whole family about the money that could probably greatly improve life. Serges, who is probably the most honest person in my Cameroonian experience, was completely screwed by the man who gave him life! What desperate fit of binging could have possibly overcome this man that he could spend 900 bucks in 3 days in village! I live on 900 bucks a month in Corvallis, and that is drinking and eating well. But the worst of it is probably the change for Serges. This probably means he will have to live a whole new reality, knowing that at any moment anyone, family, friends, or strangers, can screw him over without blinking.

****** A month later, it seems that some things have been cleared up. Serges and his dad had a meeting with the chef of the village at church (aka with God) and it was decided that his dad was to reimburse him the money that was supposed to be his. It was also decided that they will split their cacao field. This means Serges will get a large portion, perhaps half, of the field to work on his own. He will get the profit from his field, and his dad will have to work his own field/spend his own money on inputs. Follow up on this decision led me to find that Serges has given up on recuperating any of his lost money this year and they are waiting to bring out technicians to divide the field for next year.