Disaster Prevention, Disaster Preparedness and Local Community Resilience Within the Context of Disaster Risk Management in Cameroon

Disaster prevention, disaster preparedness and local community resilience within the context of disaster risk management in Cameroon

Festus Tongwa Aka, Gaston Wung Buh, Wilson Yatoh Fantong, Issa, Isabella Tem Zouh, Serges Laurent Bopda Djomou, Richard Tanwi Ghogomu, et al.

Natural Hazards Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards

ISSN 0921-030X

Nat Hazards DOI 10.1007/s11069-016-2674-5

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Nat Hazards DOI 10.1007/s11069-016-2674-5

ORIGINAL PAPER

Disaster prevention, disaster preparedness and local community resilience within the context of disaster risk management in Cameroon

1,2 2 Festus Tongwa Aka • Gaston Wung Buh • 1 1 3 Wilson Yatoh Fantong • Issa • Isabella Tem Zouh • 1 4 Serges Laurent Bopda Djomou • Richard Tanwi Ghogomu • 5 6 7 Terry Gibson • Mary-Ann Marmol del • Luc Nkamdjou Sigha • 8 9 10 Takeshi Ohba • Minoru Kusakabe • Yutaka Yoshida • 1 1 Gregory Tanyileke • Joseph Metuk Nnange • Joseph Victor Hell1

Received: 15 May 2015 / Accepted: 2 November 2016 Ó Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Abstract Cameroon was one of the 57 countries that participated in the Global Network of Civil Society Organizations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR) Views from the Frontline (VFL) 2013 project on everyday disasters, community resilience and disaster preparedness. Working with 6 other civil society organizations, Geotechnology, Environmental Assessment and Disaster Risk Reduction administered 400 questionnaires to frontliners in 7 administrative regions of the country on 14 disaster indicators that assessed the underlying causes of disasters and the level of preparedness and resilience of the communities.

Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11069-016-2674-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

& Festus Tongwa Aka [email protected]

1 Institute of Geological and Mining Research (IRGM) Ministry of Scientiﬁc Research and Innovation (MINRESI), P.O. Box 4110, Yaounde´, Cameroon 2 Geotechnology, Environmental Assessment and Disaster Risk Reduction (GEADIRR), P.O. Box 437, Limbe, Cameroon 3 Ministry of Environment and Nature Protection, Yaounde´, Cameroon 4 Geo-Environmental Management and Disaster Awareness (GEMDA), P.O. Box 7003, Yaounde´, Cameroon 5 Global Network of Civil Society Organizations for Disaster Reduction, 8 Waldegrave Road, Teddington, London TW11 8HT, UK 6 Department of Geology and Soil Science, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281/S8, 9000 Ghent, Belgium 7 International Commission of Congo-Oubangui-Sangha Basin (CICOS), Building Kilou, 24 Av. Wagenia, Kinshasa/Gombo, Democratic Republic of Congo 8 Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Tokai University, 4-1-1 Kitakaname, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa 259-1292, Japan 123 Author's personal copy

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Scores from the 89% of informants who responded show that Cameroon occupied the 43rd position globally, was 15th out of the 23 African countries, and was 7th out of the 9 West African countries surveyed. Cameroon average scores for all 14 indicators were lower (poorer) than the West African average, suggesting that a lot more effort is needed in managing disaster risks in the country, i.e., reducing vulnerabilities and increasing preparedness and resilience. At the national level, the Center and Adamaoua Regions recorded the lowest scores of the survey. Above-average scores recorded for some indicators in the Southwest, Northwest and Far North Regions are interpreted to be due to disaster prevention activities like monitoring via early warning systems, resilience building and outreach exercises carried out for disasters like landslides, floods, gas explosions from lakes, and volcanic eruptions, in these areas. Cameroon presently has many laws relating to disaster risk management matters, but an analysis of how the laws are applied shows that the expected results have not been attained, mainly because of over-centralization and a reactive, rather than a proactive approach to disaster risk management. Given her current disaster risk profile, Cameroon has to increase research, better manage, and make disaster risks a central tenet in her development project decision-making, if the goal earmarked in her development vision to become a newly industrialized country by 2035 has to be realized. We propose the creation of an autonomous statutory National Disaster Risk Management Agency which will have a local community-driven bottom-top approach to disaster risk management, and disseminate appropriately tailored disaster risk information to promote a proactive community-based resilience and disaster prevention framework. This will fulfill the post-2015 Sendai framework priority of action No. 2 (strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk) and appropriately prepare Cameroon to face the challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Keywords Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA) Á Disaster risk reduction Á Views from the Frontline (VFL) 2013 Á GEADIRR Á Cameroon national scores Á Department of Civil Protection (DPC) Á National Disaster Risk Management Agency (NADRIMA)

1 Introduction

Of the 8 Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets, eradicating extreme poverty and hunger (MDG target No 1) and ensuring environmental sustainability (MDG target No 7) are important entry points for disaster risk reduction because extreme poverty cannot be eradicated, and sustainable development cannot be attained unless disaster risk reduction is mainstreamed into development policies, plans and implementation. Disasters undermine the results of development and impoverish the community and the state (SFA 2015). Cameroon was among the 168 countries that signed the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA) in 2005, committing to take action within 10 years (up to 2015) to reduce human and socioeconomic disaster losses as a means to attaining the MDGs. Cameroon also signed, as one of the 187 countries, the Sendai framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (MINATD 2015). The HFA emphasized that disaster risk reduction is central to development policy and a concern of multidisciplinary knowledge about humanity and the

9 Department of Biology and Environmental Chemistry, University of Toyama, 3190 Gofuku, Toyama-shi 980-8555, Japan 10 Yoshida Consulting Engineering Ofﬁce, 3-46-10,Tsukigaoka, Morioka, Iwate-ken 020-0121, Japan 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards environment. From the civil society perspective, the Global Network of Civil Society Organizations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR) monitored national, regional and global progress toward attainment of the five ‘priorities for action’ of the HFA that were: (1) prioritizing disaster risk reduction by providing high-profile leadership, establishing relevant policies and programs, and allocating resources to implement them; (2) identifying, assessing and monitoring disaster risks and improving early warning systems; (3) creating awareness at all levels of society about risks and providing information about how to reduce them; (4) reducing social, economic and environmental vulnerabilities and those related to land use through improved development planning and post-disaster recon- struction by all sectors; and (5) ‘strengthening disaster preparedness for effective response at all levels’ (UNISDR 2005, p6). The GNDR carried out the monitoring from a bottom-up perspective via a program called Views from the Frontline (VFL), the main goal of which was to support effective frontline implementation of the HFA to build the resilience of vulnerable people and communities at risk to disasters. Views from the Frontline implemented 3 projects to measure the level of progress in the implementation of HFA. The first VFL project in 2009 (‘clouds but little rain…’) was carried out in 48 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas, by 400 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). It sampled the views of 7000 respondents and provided proof that even though some governments had made progress (4 years after the start of HFA) in their national policies and legislations in establishing disaster risk reduction policies, these had yet to be translated into changes in the livelihoods of their people on the frontlines (VFL 2009). The second survey in 2011 (‘if we do not join hands…’) was on the role of local governance on disaster risk reduction, i.e., the significance of state and non-state actors working together to ensure the safety and well-being of their communities. It was carried out by 511 civil society organizations in 69 countries and had 20,290 respondents with 57 video case studies (including one from Limbe, Cameroon). Using 21 local risk governance indicators, VFL (2011) found that significant barriers to the implementation of plans and policies at local level are lack of political authority, absence or inadequate capacities or financial resources, and minimal or no support from central government (VFL 2011). The 2013 VFL project (‘beyond 2015’) was on ‘everyday disasters, community resilience and disaster preparedness.’ It was carried out by 450 CSOs in 57 countries and collected the views of 21,455 people on the frontline (VFL 2013). Geotechnology, Environmental Assessment and Disaster Risk Reduction (GEADIRR) is involved in, among other sustainable environmental initiatives, using remote sensing technology in disaster risk studies in Cameroon. From previous desk and field work of establishing the disaster risk profile of Cameroon by GEADIRR (see Fig. 1 and below), one of the many important gaps noticed was that local communities (i.e., those at the frontline), the civil society and traditional stakeholders are not involved in knowledge creation and decision- making on matters of disaster risk reduction (GEADIRR 2009). The VFL projects therefore offered an opportunity to investigate the Cameroon finding further and make suggestions to the Cameroon government, so GEADIRR expressed interest and was commissioned by GNDR as the Cameroon National Coordinating Organization (NCO) for the 2011 and 2013 VFL projects. Detailed results of the GEADIRR (2011) VFL survey on local governance on disaster risk reduction in Cameroon can be found in Buh et al. (2012). In this paper, we present the results of VFL (2013) project in Cameroon. After giving a brief overview of the Cameroon disaster risk profile, we compare the Cameroon results of the VFL (2013) survey with those from other West African countries and with the global average. We try to explain the observed differences within the context of disaster risk prevention (disaster monitoring), preparedness (early warning systems), and dissemination 123 Author's personal copy

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Fig. 1 Disaster risk proﬁle for Cameroon (GEADIRR 2009) and regions where GNDR VFL (2013) surveys were carried out of disaster risk information (outreach) in Cameroon. We examine the legislative disaster management framework in the country and suggest that its plethora of laws beginning more than 30 years ago has not delivered the expected results. Given that Cameroon needs to mainstream disaster risk reduction into her development program if she wants to attain 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards the status of an emerging nation by 2035 (MINEPAD 2009), we propose a revision of the disaster risk management system based on putting more emphasis on preventing, rather than only responding to disasters.

2 Study area

2.1 Cameroon physiography and geology

Cameroon is located in Central Africa, extending from the Gulf of Guinea to Lake Chad (Fig. 1). The country covers a surface area of 475,440 km2, about 1.3% of which is occupied by water. It is bounded to the south by Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Congo, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and the Republic of Nigeria, to the north by Lake Chad, and to the east by the Republic of Chad and the Central African Republic. Cameroon is divided into five geographic zones that mimic the main climatic and vegetation regimes of the African continent, thus the appellation ‘Africa in miniature.’ These are the coastal plan, low south Cameroon plateau, western high plateau, the forested southern plateau and the northern savanna plain (Neba 1990). Cameroon is a middle lower income food-deficient country (2013 GDP per capita of USD 2400) with a population of 22.25 million, giving a population density of 47 persons per km2. About 45% of the population are under the age of 15. Sixty percent of the population (which is projected to reach 40 million in the next 30 years) live in cities (UNISDR-Africa 2010; WFP 2011; AfDB 2013). A higher urban/ rural population ratio (3:2) translates into more pressure on basic services like electricity, water and housing, leading to development of slums and ghettos where the inhabitants are more vulnerable to disasters. The geological history of Cameroon starts with the Achaean era between 3.5 and 2.5 billion years ago. Its different phases of development are illustrated by geological masses formed during successive orogenic cycles characterized by the formation of mountain ranges, and subsequent extension phases by the splitting of the continental crust (Toteu et al. 2004). A major geological feature, the presence of which accounts for most hazards in the country, is the Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL). It extends for 1600 km from the Atlantic Ocean islands, straddling the continental margin into mainland Cameroon (Aka et al. 2004; Asaah et al. 2014). Its basement comprises of calco-alkaline granites and syenites of Precambrian and Pan African (500 ± 100 Ma) ages, which outcrop mainly in Southern Cameroon and in the central and northeastern parts. Post-Pan African ring complexes of granites and syenites (so far) represent the first manifestations of magmatic activity on the CVL (Kamdem et al. 2002). Mainly alkaline volcanism dates from the Oligocene to the present, with Quaternary volcanism having produced many crater lakes, some of which exhibit disastrous gas explosions (Marzoli et al. 2015; Issa et al. 2015; Kusakabe 2015; Aka 2015). Mount Cameroon, a 4070 m high volcano near the coast, is the highest elevation in the country. Upper Cretaceous sediments, mainly sandstones, and Quaternary deposits occur in the Douala Basin (Hedberg 1968).

2.2 Cameroon disaster risk proﬁle

The disaster risk profile of Cameroon (Fig. 1) reflects its geography, geology and socio- economy. It is affected by and/or vulnerable to hydro-meteorological hazards (floods, landslides, droughts, sea level rise, wild fires), geological hazards (gas explosions from

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Nat Hazards lakes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes), ecological hazards (locust swarms), technological or man-made hazards (urban ﬁres, conﬂicts, industrial and transport accidents) and bio- logical hazards (epidemics). Below we make a brief overview of the disaster risk situation in Cameroon.

2.2.1 Seasonal ﬂoods

Three massive rain-triggered flood incidences stroke the northern parts of Cameroon in 2012 (Sigha et al. 2013). During the same period, the Bamessing and Widikum floods occurred in the Northwest Region (GEADIRR 2013). Unreported flood incidences are common in urban and rural areas and are on the rise in Cameroon, especially in major cities like Yaounde´ (Central Region), Douala (Littoral Region), Limbe (SW Region) and Bamenda (NW Region). Floods have resulted in several casualties and a huge loss of property and misery especially by urban slum dwellers. Climate change-triggered fluctu- ations in rainfall patterns (UNEP 2013), poor urbanization (i.e., increasing engineering activities without integration of disaster risk reduction policies), and misguided house/ industrial waste disposal like indiscriminate dumping in water channels or undredged canals are some of the common causes of inundation in Cameroon (GEADIRR 2009, 2011).

2.2.2 Landslides

Landslides have killed at least 64 people every year for the past 30 years in Cameroon (Ayonghe et al. 2002; Buh et al. 2012). Devastating landslides have occurred in Melon, Yaounde´, Santa, Bafaka, Dschang, Belo, Limbe, Buea, Kemkem, Wabane and Bamanda (Zogning et al. 2007). Common triggering mechanisms for landslides in Cameroon include one or a combination of heavy rainfall, earthquakes, volcanic eruption and anthropogenic factors like urbanization, deforestation and domestic/industrial sewage seeps. Most of the landslides occurred in localities along the CVL (Zogning et al. 2007; Asaah et al. 2014) and between June and September which is the rainiest period of the year in Cameroon. Rainwater would seep through and accumulate in thick soil layers that result from the weathering of volcanic or basement rocks to give thick soil profiles, thus facilitating saturation and gravity sliding of soil and rock layers. Our field findings in the cities of Limbe, Bamenda and Yaounde´ support the view that building and living in houses on the faces of slopes that exceed a critical perching angle enhances the likelihood of landslide occurrence (GEADIRR 2009). Delimitation of landslide prone (hazardous) areas has not been carried out in Cameroon.

2.2.3 Volcanic eruptions

Volcanic eruptions are limited to the activity of Mount Cameroon in the southwest part of the country. It is the only currently active volcano in Cameroon and has erupted 7 times within the last 100 years (Suh et al. 2003; Yokoyama et al. 2007). Its last two eruptions took place in 1999 and 2000. Lava flows, ash fall, pyroclastic fall, mud flows, volcanic landslides, lahars, rock fall and volcanic gas emissions are common threats posed by the volcano on its inhabited and agricultural southeast, east and northern flanks (Thierry et al. 2008).

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2.2.4 Earthquakes

Close to 40 felt tectonic earthquakes have occurred in and around Cameroon within the last 165 years. The magnitudes (Richter scale) range from 2.6 to 5.7, and their intensities (Modiﬁed Mercalli) range from III to VIII (Ntepe et al. 2004). These earthquakes are caused by the existence of a mega fault structure—the Foumban Shear Zone or Ngaoun- dere lineament in the north, and the Congo craton and Sanaga fault systems in the southern part of the country. Periodic movements along the faults result in earthquakes in the central (Tibati, Magba, Garoua-Boulaı¨ ) and southern (Kribi, Lolodorf, Akonolinga, Yokadouma) areas (Tabod et al. 1992; Nnange et al. 2013). Eruptive activity of Mt. Cameroon in the southwest is also associated with the occurrence of volcanic earthquakes, some of which are strong enough to rock houses (Ntepe 2015).

2.2.5 Gas explosions from volcanic lakes

Lake Monoun in the Western Region was the site of a catastrophic gas explosion in 1984, which killed 37 people. Two years after in August 1986, Lake Nyos in the Northwest Region also exploded releasing gas that asphyxiated *1750 people and over 3000 cattle. Initial lake monitoring studies showed that the killer gas in both lakes was magmatic carbon dioxide (CO2) and that the gas contents in them were increasing, thus increasing the potential for other gas releases (see Kusakabe 2015; Aka 2015).

2.2.6 Others

The disaster risk profile of Cameroon is incomplete without mention of sea level rise (Fonteh et al. 2009; CMEF 2005; Folack et al. 1999), epidemics (Ayanji 2004), fire and automobile accidents (Forbinake 1998; Bang 2014), the Bakassi crisis between Cameroon and Nigeria (Check 2011), farmer–grazer conflicts (Sone 2011), influx into Cameroon of refugees fleeing attacks from northeastern Nigeria by the terrorist sect Boko Haram (UNHCR 2015), and food insecurity that results from unimproved agricultural practices, rural poverty, poor transport network, malfunctioning markets, vulnerability to fluctuating food prices, low education, and heavy exposure to climatic hazards, especially erratic rainfall (WFP 2011).

3 Research methodology

Based on VFL (2009, 2011) results, the 2013 VFL program was developed through close consultation with GNDR network members (GEADIRR is a network member) in online discussions and regional workshops. The consultations highlighted the role of local action and learning as the center of community resilience, so GNDR designed VFL (2013) to focus on the action and learning cycle (refection, learning and action) which enable communities to be active participants in building their own disaster risk resilience (VFL 2013). It involved 2 stages: a survey and consultation stage, and the action and learning stage that built on local level information gathered in the survey and consultation stage and then supported its practical implementation at the local level (Kor- ovulavula 2012;VFL2013). This paper focuses on the survey and consultation stage carried out in Cameroon in areas known to be prone to one type of hazard or having had

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Nat Hazards some history of disasters over the past 3 decades (Fig. 1;Sect.2). Some recent disaster areas like the 2012 Maga floods in Far North Region and the Bamessing floods in the Northwest Region were surveyed. A massive debris flow occurred in Akwaya subdivision in the Southwest Region in August 2012 (Aka et al. 2012). However, due to the highly inaccessible nature of the area, the affected communities were not included in the survey. All areas surveyed had some locally based CSO already working on disaster risk reduction matters, thus familiar to local government and community members, and could therefore act as a Participating Organization (PO). Seven of the 10 administrative regions of the country were selected (Adamoaua, Center, Far North, Littoral, Northwest, South and Southwest). These are about the same areas where VFL 2011 was carried out (Buh et al. 2012) so the participants were already mostly aware of and had participated in the GNDR project in 2011. The NCO for Cameroon started the project by organizing a workshop in Yaounde, in which the POs (Table 1) were again (after 2011) briefed on what the HFA is, and on the practical modalities to carry out the VFL (2013)project. Both quantitative and qualitative data were used in the project. Quantitative data were generated during face-to-face discussions of 2 sets of questionnaires. The first set was on the profile of the respondents (age, sex, geography, etc.), as well as their socioeconomic status, perception of threat, and disaster-induced change in losses in their community. The second set was on 14 questions tied to indicators identified by GNDR (following the online discussions and regional workshops) under 4 key aspects of the action and learning cycle, namely ‘context,’ ‘observation/reflection,’ ‘knowledge and learning’ and ‘organizing and action’ (VFL 2013). While generally assessing progress made toward the five priorities of action of HFA on disaster risk reduction (see introduction), the questions focused on the underlying causes of ‘every day disasters’ in the community and the community’s resilience to these disasters (VFL 2013). Everyday disasters include disasters that are very common, especially in the so-called developing countries like in sub- Saharan Africa. Such disasters (landslides, seasonal floods, droughts, fires, pests, food insecurity, fluctuating prices, insecure land rights, conflicts, corruption, etc) often go unnoticed beyond the immediate vicinities of the affected people, thus leaving vulnerable populations with limited capacities to cope. Although cumulative losses due to everyday disasters account for the majority of localized disaster losses, they are largely unreported, uninsured, do not attract national government attention or unlock external financial assistance (VFL 2013). Changing climate increases the intensity of climate-related hydro-metrological disasters (UNEP 2013), making the situation even more complex for frontliners, many of whom live in abject poverty and face enormous development challenges (Tall et al. 2013). Targeted questionnaire respondents included local government officials (divisional and subdivisional officers, police, gendarmes), elected people’s representatives (mayors and councilors), traditional chiefs, village/quarter heads, presidents of village/quarter meetings and associations, school teachers, doctors and nurses, the clergy, civil society leaders and other people living in at-risk zones (Fig. 1). Questionnaires were designed with the following rankings for scores: 1 = Not at all 2 = To a limited extent 3 = To some extent 4 = Yes, to a great extent 5 = Comprehensively X = Don’t know.

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Table 1 The GNDR VFL 2013 survey indicators, civil society organizations that participated in the survey, and survey scores for 7 regions of Cameroon Heading GNDR VFL Region in AD CEN FN LIT NW S SW National Regional Global 2013 indicator Cameroona average average for averaged number Participating LIDEE ENV SAVANE CEDERES ENCSD GEMDA GEADIRR West Africac Organization 4 Life VERTE (PO)b Author's Perception of 3.59 2.33 3.16 2.26 3.28 2.33 2.45 2.77 3.46 3.28 threat Change in losses 3.96 3.45 4.00 3.28 3.58 3.40 3.22 3.56 3.83 3.57 Context 1 Multi-risk 1.89 1.83 2.54 2.30 2.36 2.10 2.65 2.24 2.41 2.49 resilience personal 2 Underlying 2.20 1.55 2.52 2.48 2.59 2.46 2.80 2.37 2.45 2.52 causes Observation 3 Risk assessment 1.62 1.76 2.18 2.48 2.47 2.36 2.56 2.21 2.39 2.45

and 4 Monitoring 1.78 1.73 3.04 2.78 2.59 2.43 2.45 2.40 2.31 2.41 copy reﬂection 5 Communication/ 1.83 1.98 2.84 2.47 2.37 2.15 2.31 2.28 2.48 2.49 public awareness Knowledge 6 Connecting 1.74 1.92 2.59 2.30 2.83 2.24 2.88 2.36 2.44 2.53 and 7 Learning 1.47 1.67 2.88 2.35 2.42 2.37 2.55 2.24 2.39 2.45 learning 8 Negotiation 1.58 1.62 2.66 2.29 2.42 2.29 2.54 2.20 2.39 2.46 9 Conﬂict 1.56 1.67 2.52 2.44 2.42 2.31 2.29 2.17 2.26 2.32 resolution 123 123 Table 1 continued

Heading GNDR VFL Region in AD CEN FN LIT NW S SW National Regional Global 2013 indicator Cameroona average average for averaged number Participating LIDEE ENV SAVANE CEDERES ENCSD GEMDA GEADIRR West Africac Organization 4 Life VERTE (PO)b

Organizing 10 Building 2.70 1.68 2.73 2.35 1.87 2.42 1.96 2.24 2.16 2.25 and action partnerships 11 Resources 1.95 1.61 1.78 1.85 1.88 1.79 1.62 1.78 2.01 2.34 12 Early warnings 1.63 1.49 2.00 2.02 2.00 1.78 1.48 1.77 2.08 2.28 Author's 13 Local actions 1.44 1.82 2.08 2.10 1.87 2.28 1.88 1.92 1.97 2.09 14 Everyday 1.32 1.90 2.27 2.40 2.10 2.19 2.56 2.10 2.35 2.46 disasters

a Abbreviations for Regions in Cameroon: AD Adamaoua, CEN Center, FN Far North, LIT Littoral, NW Northwest, S South, SW Southwest personal b Abbreviations for Participating Organizations (POs): LIDEE Ligne pour la Didactique de l’Education et de De´ve´lopement Durable, ENV 4 Life Environment for Life, CEDERES Center for Development Research, ENCSD Esu Nature Conservation and Sustainable Development, GEMDA Geo-environment Management and Disaster Awareness Organization, GEADIRR Geotechnology, Environmental Assessment and Disaster Risk reduction (GEADIRR coordinated the survey in Cameroon = NCO) c Calculated from national averages for West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Gambia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal) copy d Calculated from regional averages (see GNDR VFL (2013) ﬁnal report) a Hazards Nat Author's personal copy

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A response of ‘5’ (ideal) would mean that there is satisfactory compliance toward the specific statement. Statements with a rating of ‘4’ indicate compliance toward the statement but with limitations in capacity and resources. A rating of ‘3’ indicates that there is some activity toward compliance with the statement, but with significant scope for improvement. Ratings below ‘2.5’ will be regarded as ‘low’ and indicate that compliance toward the specific statement is very limited or nonexistent. A sample of the questionnaires is given as supplementary material for this paper. A total of 400 questionnaires were administered by GEADIRR and six POs in 7 regions of Cameroon during the months of October–December 2012 (Table 1). Eighty-nine percent of the informants responded, giving 156 respondents more than the minimum required by GNDR. Qualitative data comprised additional commentaries by respondents on particular statements and also community consultations that were carried out in Yaounde´, Limbe, Esu and Kribi. These are not part of this paper.

4 Survey results and interpretation

Scores for the 14 indicators from the 356 informants assessed the progress made since 2005 on the level of preparedness and community resilience against disasters in the 7 regions most prone to disasters in Cameroon (Sect. 2). They are shown in Table 1, together with names of the CSOs that carried out the surveys. Results of the 14 indicators are presented and interpreted under 4 key aspects of the action and learning cycle, namely ‘context,’ ‘observation/reﬂection,’ ‘knowledge and learning’ and ‘organizing and action’ (VFL 2013).

4.1 Rural/urban and male/female survey results

58 and 42% of the questionnaires were administered in urban and rural settings, respectively. Compared to our VFL (2011) survey, more rural areas were sampled in the 2013 survey (Fig. 2a). This is reflected in the GNDR philosophy of getting to the frontline, i.e., reaching the people most exposed/vulnerable to disasters and finding out how their lives have changed since the start of implementation of HFA in 2005. The VFL (2013) survey was male-biased (65%). This result reflects male dominance of the targeted respondents (local administrative officers, heads of communities, CSOs, elected local government members, etc.). In the community consultations, we strongly stressed the fact that disaster risk is not gender-neutral, given that the nature and extent of exposure and vulnerability are different for men, women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities (Turnbull et al. 2013). This is based on their different roles, responsibilities, access to resources, domestic and traditional laws, and legal and cultural issues. The main cause of women vulnerability seems to be based on unequal power relations within societies which pervades all aspects of their lives and deny them basic rights from access to, for example, education and participation in community governance (Philippa 2014; Jahangiri et al. 2014). In an analysis of disasters in 141 countries, Neumayer and Plumper (2007) found out that gender differences in associated deaths had a direct link with women’s economic and social rights. To have a balanced view at the frontline, equal perception and views of the different vulnerable groups in the society are therefore very important inputs.

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(a) 250 VFL 2011 VFL 2013 200

150

Count 100

0 Male Female Rural Urban

(b) Much better (1.9)

Better (10.6) Much poorer (16.2)

About the same (35.7) Poorer (35.7)

Fig. 2 Histograms of a male versus female and rural versus urban (VFL 2011, 2013), and b pie chart of socioeconomic status in the communities for VFL 2013 surveys in 7 regions of Cameroon. Numbers in parenthesis in b denote percentages

4.2 Socioeconomic status in the communities

All respondents ranged in age from 18 to 60 years. Thirty-six percent of them felt that the socioeconomic status in the community they live in has not changed (in 2012 when the survey was made) compared to what it was in 2005. The same percentage thought the situation has gotten poorer. Sixteen percent thought the situation is much poorer. 11 and 2%, respectively, thought that the situation has gotten better and much better (Fig. 2b).

4.3 Perception of threat and change in losses due to disasters

The question on perception examined the views of informants on how high the threat is of disasters in their communities. We found that change in losses scored higher than perception of threat in all the 7 regions surveyed. This suggests that people are not aware of the threads they are exposed to. This is a strong call for hazard risk mapping and information dissemination. The populations of Adamaoua, Far North and Northwest Regions of Cameron do have a higher perception of the kind of local risk common to their community 123 Author's personal copy

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Fig. 3 Perception of 5 respondents about disasters and Perception of threat their views on changes in disaster Change in losses losses in their communities since 4 2005. Scores are rated on 5 and the horizontal dashed line (here and in Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8) 3 marks the 2.5 (low) score limit, indicating that compliance toward the speciﬁc statement (see 2 questionnaire in supplementary material) is very limited or Score (over 5) nonexistent (see text). Data for 1 this and Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are from Table 1 0 Adamaoua Center Far North Littoral Northwest South Southwest Region

(Fig. 3). While it would appear most informants from the Center, Southwest and Littoral Regions have a lower perception or limited notion of threat of disasters, they perceived a number of hazards related to human activities especially in major urban centers as Douala and Yaounde. Generally, peoples’ perceptions of risk and disaster trends are fundamental in determining their abilities to build resilience. How risk is managed reﬂects individual and costmary differences in experiences, knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and judgments (UNESCO 2014; Fletcher et al. 2013).

4.4 Context of disasters and community resilience

The context of disasters and community resilience was examined using the indicators of underlying causes and multi-risk resilience (see supplementary material and Table 1). Underlying causes assessed to what extent the community finds that its progress on tackling factors leading to disasters is restricted by factors beyond their control (e.g., government decisions on financial resources, environmental management and agricultural development policies, building and planning). The question on multi-risk resilience assessed whether the community tackles multiple factors that lead to different types of disasters. Slightly above-average scores (Fig. 4) were recorded only for the Northwest and Southwest Regions where informants do mobilize themselves to tackle multiple risk factors in their communities. The Center Region recorded the lowest score for both indicators. This may reflect cultural (linguistic, e.g., anglophone/francophone) differences that greatly influence attitudes in these regions. In addition to the pervasive poverty, congestion in slum/ghetto dwellings, lack of appropriate town planning, inap- propriate waste disposal systems (e.g., littering of, and blockage of water ways) were identified as some of the underlying causes of floods and landslides. At the community consultations, participants were unanimous that underlying causes and multi-risk resilience are of general concern, given the predominantly top-down approach in disaster management in Cameroon (see Sect. 5), where decisions are taken without due consultation with the communities.

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4 Multi-risk resilience 3,5 Underlying causes

2,5

1,5

Score (over 5) 1

0,5

0 Adamaoua Center Far North Littoral Northwest South Southwest Region

Fig. 4 Overall mean scores for indicators of context (multi-risk resilience and underlying causes) for everyday disasters and community resilience in Cameroon

4.5 Observation and reﬂection

Risk assessment, monitoring and communication/public awareness were used as indicators of observation and reﬂection. They are the starting point of people-centered resilience that call for concerted efforts toward having a better understanding of the local risk and information sharing with other members of the community through community meetings (VFL 2013; Turnbull et al. 2013). The indicator on risk assessment investigated to what extent representatives of the local community are involved in risk assessment. An overall score of 2.21 on 5.0 from all the 356 respondents from the 7 regions is below the global average (2.45, see Table 1). Results from the Far North, Littoral and Southwest Regions seem to reﬂect some involvement of community members when undertaking risk assessment (Fig. 5). The indicator on monitoring assessed whether local government regularly

4 Risk assessment Monitoring 3,5 Communication/public awareness 3

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1,5 Score (over 5) 1

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0 Adamaoua Center Far North Littoral Northwest South Southwest Region

Fig. 5 Overall mean scores for indicators of observation and reﬂection (risk assessment, monitoring and communication/public awareness) for everyday disasters and community resilience in Cameroon 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards monitors progress to reduce disaster risk. An overall average score of 2.40 suggests that this happens to a limited extent. This score supports our VFL (2011) results which assessed whether local government regularly monitors and reports on progress (Buh et al. 2012). The indicator on communication and public awareness assessed to what extent local government ensures information on local risk trends and risk reduction measures is regularly communicated to communities to prepare them and build their resilience. A mean score of 2.28 (Table 1) indicates that this happens to a limited extent.

4.6 Knowledge and learning

The 4 indicators of knowledge and learning examined in the survey were connecting, learning, negotiation and conflict resolution (Table 1). The indicator on connecting assessed the level of integration of traditional knowledge and beliefs with scientific knowledge toward risk reduction. It recorded a mean score of 2.36, suggesting limitations in the integration of these different kinds of knowledge to a better understanding of the local risk situation in Cameroon. Local communities in different parts of the country do have specific tales relating to the existence of hazards (Buh et al. 2012; Ayanji 2004; Atanga 2010). The indicator on learning assessed to what extent local (state/non-state) leaders discuss, share and analyze disaster risk information. An average overall score of 2.24 shows clearly that this is limited. This is an important aspect leading to building community resilience where members of the community have the opportunity to discuss and share their predicaments with the facilitation of some government or CSO agent. A better understanding (via leering by information sharing) of knowledge about potential hazards in local communities reinforces the capacities of the community and contributes toward reducing vulnerability (GEADIRR 2013). Adamaoua and Center Regions recorded the lowest scores for the 4 indicators of knowledge and learning (Fig. 6), suggesting that more work is needed in these areas.

4 Connecting Learning 3,5 Negotiation Conflict resolution 3

2,5

1,5 Score (over 5) 1

0,5

0 Adamaoua Center Far North Littoral Northwest South Southwest Region

Fig. 6 Overall mean scores for indicators of knowledge and learning (connecting, learning, negotiation, conﬂict resolution) for everyday disasters and community resilience in Cameroon

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4.7 Organizing and action

Organizing and action are the last stages in a community-centered resilience approach because they lead to concrete actions at the frontline. These actions build capacity and reduce the level of vulnerability to disaster risk. Five indicators of organizing and action were examined. The indictor of building partnerships examined to what extent partnerships to reduce disaster risk exist between local communities, the private sector and local authorities. It had above-average scores in Adamaoua and Far North Regions, with the Center recording the lowest score (Fig. 7). In the different community consultations, it was clear that more partnering is required to close gaps between different stakeholders. The indicator on resources examined to what extent ﬁnancial and other assistance that meet local needs for risk reduction activities are available. It registered an overall mean score of 1.78, the lowest in the whole survey (Table 1). As for resources, the indicator on early warning systems got the lowest score (mean of 1.77) of the whole survey (Table 1). Local early warning systems are relatively absent in the country, excepting for the Lakes Nyos and Monoun areas in the Western Highlands and Mt. Cameroon area in the Southwest Region (see Sect. 5). The question on local actions assessed whether the local authorities and community have adequate capacity to prepare for and mitigate disaster. Adamaoua and the Center Regions recorded the lowest scores (Fig. 7), with a national mean of 1.92. This is a clear indication of the extend of limitations. The indicator on everyday disasters addressed the issue as to what extent resources provided by government (local or national) meet response needs in times of disasters. Victims and their families usually bear the brunt of everyday disasters (see above). During the different community consultations, political will and an overburden administration were identiﬁed as underlying causes why limited resources are available at the local levels. However, government does take steps each time a major disaster occurs with reported casualties, but a comparative analysis of this effort when it occurs in one part of the country to another does not indicate what criteria are used in deciding what assistance to be given in which disaster (GEADIRR 2009).

4 Building partnerships Resoures 3,5 Early warnings Local actions 3 Everyday disasters

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1,5 Score (over 5) 1

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0 Adamaoua Center Far North Littoral Northwest South Southwest Region

Fig. 7 Overall mean scores for indicators of organization and action (building partnerships, resources, early warning, local action, everyday disasters) for everyday disasters and community resilience in Cameroon 123 Author's personal copy

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5 Discussion

5.1 Variations in national, regional and global trends

Views from the Frontline 2013 project was carried out in 57 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas. It sampled the views of 21,455 people on the frontline, 1.7% of whom came from 7 of the 10 administrative regions of Cameroon. Average scores for the 14 indicators (Table 1) for Cameroon, the 9 West African countries involved in the survey (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and The Gambia), as well as the global average (VFL 2013) are plotted in Fig. 8. Of the 57 countries that participated in the survey, the 4 that reported the lowest progress were Pakistan (57th), Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Haiti (54th); meanwhile, the 4 that reported the most progress were Namibia (1st), Malawi, Viet Nam and Philippines (4th). Cameroon occupied the 43rd position globally, was 15th out of the 23 African countries surveyed, and was 7th out of the 9 West African countries (VFL 2013). Important features of Fig. 8 are as follows: (1) on a total score of 5, the Cameroon, West Africa and global averages are either just at (global average) or lower than 2.5 (Cameroon and West Africa). This mirrors the global perception toward attainment of the ﬁve main goals of the HFA (see introduction). (2) Indicators of organizing and action recorded the lowest scores globally. It is indicative that the post- 2015 framework should put more emphasis in these areas (SFA 2015). In its ongoing project, the GNDR is putting more emphasis on frontline action with local communities (GNDR 2013). (3) The Cameroon average is lower than the regional average for all 14 indicators, suggesting that a lot more effort is needed by the authorities in managing disaster risks in the country. (4) Above-average scores in Cameroon were recorded for multi-risk resilience and underlying causes (Southwest Region), monitoring (Far North, Northwest and Littoral Regions), and connecting, learning and negotiation (Far North, Northwest and Southwest Regions). (5) Apart from the indicator on building partnerships (number 10 in Adamaoua, Fig. 8), the Center and Adamaoua Regions recorded the lowest

Adamaoua Central Far north 3,5 Litorral Northwest South 3 Southwest National average Regional average Global average 2,5

2 Score (over 5)

1,5

1 12345678 91011121314 Survey indicator number

Fig. 8 National (7 regions in Cameroon), regional (9 West African countries) and global (57 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas) overall mean scores for VFL 2013 survey (see text). X-axis shows the survey indicator number in Table 1 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards scores of the survey in Cameroon. Which are those aspects of disaster prevention, preparedness and resilience that made some regions of Cameroon record above-average scores in the survey?

5.2 Disaster prevention, preparedness and community resilience

According to UNISDR (2009), disaster prevention/mitigation concerns strategies and actions taken to reduce or eliminate the adverse impacts of hazards and related disasters. Disaster preparedness is the knowledge and capacities developed by governments, professional response and recovery organizations, CSOs, communities and individuals to effectively anticipate, respond to, and recover from the impacts of likely, imminent or current hazard events or conditions. Preparedness is based on a sound analysis of disaster risks and good linkages with early warning systems. It is carried out within the context of disaster risk management and aims to build the capacities needed to efficiently manage all types of emergencies and achieve orderly transitions from response through to sustained recovery. The resilience of a community exposed to a potentially hazardous event is its ability to resist, absorb and recover from the effects of the event in a timely and efficient manner, including through the preservation and restoration of its essential basic structures and functions. It is determined by the degree to which the community has the necessary resources and is capable of organizing itself both prior to and during times of need (UNISDR 2009). Key words or phrases in these definitions would be: actions taken to reduce or eliminate (prevention), anticipate, respond to, recover from, likely/imminent, hazard events (preparedness), resist, recover, preserve and restore essential basic structures, organize itself both prior to and during times of need (resilience, e.g., Turnbull et al. 2013). What aspects of these are pertinent to the regions that recorded above-average scores for VFL 2013 survey in Cameroon (Fig. 8)?

5.2.1 Disaster prevention

The most deadly disaster yet to hit Cameroon was the explosion of Lake Nyos in the Northwest Region in August 1986 and will be used here as an example. The explosion released a huge amount of gas that killed *1750 people and over 3000 cattle. It came 2 years after another gas explosion happened in Lake Monoun (West Region), killing 37 people. Studies showed that the killer gas in both lakes was carbon dioxide seeping into the lakes from the Earth’s interior and that gas contents in the lakes were increasing (Fig. 9), thus increasing the likelihood or imminence of other gas releases (see review in Kusakabe 2015). Proactive measures taken to prevent/mitigate this disaster have included the installation of pipes in the lakes to safely siphon gas-rich bottom waters to the surface thus liberating the CO2 from lake bottom to the atmosphere. The system removed all accumulated gas in Lake Monoun by 2011, but recent monitoring shows that gas is again building up at the lake bottom, so another system has been installed to remove the gas by uplifting bottom waters to the surface (Fig. 9a; Kusakabe 2015; Yoshida et al. 2014). Over 95% of the gas contained in Lake Nyos has been removed by 3 degassing pipes (Fig. 9b). It is anticipated that Lake Nyos should also be void of accumulated gas in the very near future. However, a recent study (Aka 2015) suggests that the mantle underlying these lakes is enriched in carbon dioxide and that this gas from the Earth’s interior will continue to seep into the lakes for a long but uncertain time in the future, so continuous long-term monitoring is required to preempt future gas disasters. Other crater lakes in Cameroon have been surveyed for their gas content. Results show that if left unchecked, only Lakes 123 Author's personal copy

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Fig. 9 Temporal variation of (a) total CO2 content in Lake 0,7 Monoun a and Lake Nyos b since the start of gas explosions in the 0,6 lakes (data from Kusakabe 2015). Arrows indicate evolution trends. 0,5

Closed and open circles, (giga mol) 2 respectively, represent gas 0,4 contents before and during controlled degassing (see text). 0,3 Note the drop in gas content in the lakes as degassing starts. The left pictures in both diagrams 0,2 show degassing pipes (3 in Lake 0,1 Nyos seen from the south). The right picture in a shows bottom Total amount of CO water being pumped (solar panel- 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 powered) to the surface to avoid Time since lake explosion (years) renewed accumulation of CO2 in the lake (man in the picture is Dr. Yoshida). The middle picture in (b) 16 b shows a CO2 early warning system installed near Lake Nyos (background), while the right 15 picture shows middle school children, to whom hazards in the 14 (giga mol)

Lake Nyos area are being 2 explained 13

Total amount of CO 9 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Time since lake explosion (years)

Monoun and Nyos have potentials to explode catastrophically (Issa et al. 2015). Barombi mbo and Manengouba lakes do overturn seasonally, thus eliminating the danger of long- term gas accumulation in them. Only 3 lakes are now known in the world to contain high gas concentrations—Nyos and Monoun (Cameroon) and Kivu in East Africa (Vaselli et al. 2015). Though unprecedented in the history of natural disasters, Lakes Nyos and Monoun- type events are now arguably the most closely monitored hazards in the world. The degassing of these lakes is a good demonstration of how science can be used to avert (prevent) disasters. Scientiﬁc investigations and awareness raising (Fig. 9b) that have been carried out on the lakes do lay the necessary groundwork for prediction of similar events. These will account for the above-average scores recoded for the VFL 2013 surveys in the Northwest Region (Fig. 8).

5.2.2 Disaster preparedness and community resilience

Aspects of disaster preparedness and community resilience that can account for the above- average scores for some regions in the Cameroon VFL (2013) survey include the

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(a) (b)

2 1

(e) (f)

h (g) (h)

availability of early warning systems in lakes and around the active Mt Cameroon, existence of canals to contain ﬂood waters, and disaster awareness raising and focus group discussions with vulnerable communities. In Lakes Nyos and Monoun, CO2 early warning systems (Aka and Yokoyama 2013) repeatedly sound a siren when the CO2 concentration in the surrounding air gets ten times higher than the normal air value (0.04%). Disaster 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards b Fig. 10 Mt Cameroon volcano observatory a showing a seismometer housing (1, with solar panel on the roof) and a portacorder recorder with a seismogram (2). Note the local seismic event on the seismogram. The antennae anchor receptors of seismic signals from out stations around the volcano. b Example of many bill boards planted around Mt Cameroon volcano to raise awareness and enhance volcanic risk resilience of local people. c Down Beach quarter of Limbe city is one of the areas most affected by seasonal floods. Note the effects of coastal erosion (red arrows) on the road. Houses built on unconsolidated pyroclastic cones (outlined) are prone to landslides so billboards d are planted to warn residents. e Bridge in a Yaounde´ neighborhood. Stream bed is filled with pet bottles. This causes flooding during heavy rains. The city council has built a canal (f) to mitigate the flood hazard. g, h are from Maga and show the effects of the devastating floods that affected the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon in 2012. Pictures a by Festus Aka; b, d by MaryAnn Del Marmol (VLIR project); c is modified from Kometa (2012); e, g from GEADIRR (2015); f from Nfor (2014); and h from Sigha et al. (2013)

awareness and outreach campaigns are routinely carried out in communities near the lakes, during which the local people are told what signs indicate the danger of CO2, e.g., breathing difficulties for humans and animals because O2 is displaced by high CO2. They are also told to, on hearing the siren, move away from the lakes to higher ground, notify other people not to go toward the lake and inform the nearest authorities as soon as possible (Fig. 9b). Well over 450,000 people live and work around the active Mt. Cameroon in the Southwest Region. Seismic activity (Fig. 10a) of the volcano rose above background level only a few days before the 1999 eruption (Suh et al. 2003; Ntepe 2015), allowing the evacuation of 200 people from Bakingili village that were threatened by the lava flow. Within the framework of the natural risk management and civil protection (GRINP) project carried out by the defunct Cameroon Ministry of Mines, hazard zoning of the volcano was done, including a vulnerability analysis of the elements at risk (Thierry et al. 2008; MiaVita 2011). Many workshops and focus group discussions are organized in cities and villages around the volcano, and bill boards (Fig. 10b) are planted to alert the population of its potential risks (Njome et al. 2010; Del Marmol et al. 2012). Limbe is a coastal city (ca 120,000 people) located on the SW flank of Mt. Cameroon (Fig. 10c). High quest for land and poverty result in people cutting the slopes of and building on unconsolidated pyroclastic cones that are prone to landslides (Fig. 10d). Landslides and floods killed about 8 (mostly slum dwelling) people every year in the city between 1990 and 2007 and destroyed many buildings, roads, bridges and life lines (electricity and water) (Che et al. 2011, 2012; Ndelle and Belle 2014). Disaster preparedness measures here include building disaster resilience partnerships and focus group discussions with community groups, as well as planting of awareness-raising bill boards in potential disaster areas indicating risk zones and evacuation routes (Fig. 10d). Within the context of VFL (2011, 2013) projects, and their follow-up frontline action initiative (GNDR 2013), GEADIRR routinely holds meetings with communities in informal settlements in the city that are prone to landslides and floods. Small-scale resiliency projects are carried out such as improving drainage in flood-prone areas, by, for example, using old car tires and earth-filled bags as embankments against landslides and floods. Such consultations and partnerships with different community groups do strengthen their capacities to cope and be more resilient (GEADIRR 2015). The population of Yaounde´ city increased at a rate of ca 50,000 people per year (Zogning et al. 2011). Most of these people live in informal settlements that make up 63% of the city. Poor town planning (thus poor drainage) means that narrow gutters and bridges are wholly or partially blocked by indiscriminate dumping of garbage, mainly plastic bottles and bags (Fig. 10e), thus causing widespread flooding. Over 130 floods occurred in

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Yaounde´ between 1980 and 2014. These did not only cause material damage and widespread inconveniences, but also killed over 80 people and resulted in waterborne diseases such as cholera and dysentery, of which 250 people were victims in 2012 alone (Bang 2014; Nfor 2014). Readiness to contain the effects of the floods included the building of a canal (Fig. 10f) by the Yaounde´ city council. This is expected to reduce flood incidences and cut down waterborne diseases. Despite this, the Center Region recorded the lowest scores in the VFL 2013 survey, indicating that such preparatory measures to manage the floods and other everyday disasters are still to have any positive impact on the residents. Over 30 people were killed in the August–September 2012 floods in the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon. Homes, livestock, farms and schools were engulfed by flood waters. Over 6000 people were rendered homeless (Fig. 10g) and needed humanitarian assistance (Fig. 10h) (DREF 2013). In a visit to the Far North Region on September 20, 2012, the President of Cameroon, among other measures, announced a CFA 1.5 billion (ca U$D 3 million) support fund to the flood victims, the putting in place of a special fund to support victims of natural disasters in the country, and again requested an inventory of risk zones, accompanied by appropriate recommendations to mitigate potential disasters. Our VFL (2013) surveys were carried out in the Far North Region during the months of October and December 2012, only soon after the August–September 2012 floods and visit of the President. National and international attention that was focused on this region following the events will account for the above-average score recorded in the survey. It is to be noted that only a few of the 14 VFL 2013 survey indicators (see supplementary material and Fig. 8) recorded above-average scores in some of the 7 regions surveyed in Cameroon, reason why Cameroon performed very poorly at both regional and global levels. Compared, for example, to Malawi (UNISDR Malawi 2015) and Namibia (NDRRMP 2004), that performed very well, the poor performance of Cameroon is likely linked to her disaster management scheme.

5.3 Analysis of the current disaster risk management framework in Cameroon

The disaster risk management focal point for Cameroon is the Department of Civil Pro- tection (DPC) in the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralization (MIN- ATD). It is responsible for coordinating national disaster risk management. Table 2 shows the laws, decrees, instructions and decisions (here collectively termed laws) that govern disaster risk management in the country, all under the guise of national civil protection. A close examination of the laws in Table 2 and an observation of how they have been practically applied on the ground to manage disasters show that: (1) The idea of managing disaster risks in the country was initiated early, i.e., soon after independence in 1960. (2) Laws before 1986 centered mainly on the protection of civilian infrastructure. This may be explained more by recent advances in telecommunication than by the absence before then of everyday disasters in the country. It is relatively easier today to get reports of a ﬂood or landslide from a remote area (Aka et al. 2012). Note that no recorded major disaster had yet hit Cameroon before the 1984 and 1986 Lakes Monoun and Nyos gas catastrophes (see above). (3) Between 1996 and 2010, there have been 4 laws regulating disaster risk management in the country. One created a national council of civil protection, one targeted emergency relief plans, another created and organized a national risk observatory, and another (in line with the requirements of UNISDR 2004, e.g., see UNISDR-Africa 2010) created a national platform for disaster risk reduction (Table 2). The laws outline 2 main crises management structures: the national crisis committee and the national platform, 123 Author's personal copy

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Table 2 Laws concerning disaster risk management in Cameroon. Sources: Department of Civil Protection (DPC) in the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralization (MINATD), Bang (2014) No Reference Attributes

1 Law No 67-LF-9 of June 12, 1967 General organization of Civil Defense in Cameroon 2 Presidential decree No 68-DF-7 of Safeguard and protection of civil installations of vital January 15, 1968 importance in the country 3 Presidential decree No 02/CAB/PRC Emphasizes the safeguard and protection of important of January 18, 1968 civilian infrastructure in Cameroon 4 Presidential Instruction No 16/CAB/ Organization of rescue efforts in Cameroon PRC of September 1, 1972 5 Decree No 74/199 of March 14, 1974 Operations of exhumation and transfer of corpses 6 Law No 86/016 of December 6, 1986 On the general reorganization of Civil Protection in Cameroon 7 Presidential Instruction No 005/CAB/ Monitoring of the Nation’s security PRC of August 24, 1987 8 Decree No 96/054 of March 12, 1996 Creation, composition and duties of the National Council of Civil Protection 9 Degree No 92/031 of March 9, 1998 On the organization of Emergency and Relief plans in Cameroon 10 Law No 98/015 of July 14, 1998 Relating to establishments classiﬁed as dangerous, unhealthy or obnoxious 11 Law No 98/0147 of July 17, 1998 Concerning the organization of MINATD 12 Degree No 2002/018 of January 18, Ratifying the Framework Convention for Emergency Aid in 2002 Civil Defense adopted at the Geneva Convention on May 22, 2000 13 PM Decision No 037/PM of March 19, On the creation and organization and functioning of a 2003 National Risk Observatory with the principal role of identifying high risk regions in the country and recommending disaster prevention measures in these areas 14 Decree No 2004/99 of April 26, 2004 Reorganizing MINATD 15 Decree No 2004/320 of December 8, Making civil protection one of the 3 key functions of 2004 MINATD 16 Decree No 2005/124 of March 15, Establishes an emergency telecom service for disaster 2005 prevention and mitigation 17 Decree No 2005/327 of September 6, Management of civil aviation security services in Cameroon 2005 18 Law No 0120/A/MINADT/DPC/CEP/ Creation, organization and functioning of the National CEA2 of September 17, 2010 Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction. Members of this platform were installed in October 2014 19 Decree No 2011\408 of December 9, Organization of Government. Disaster management again 2011 entrusted with Department of civil protection (DPC) which has 2 organs, namely a pilot committee and a national coordination with 1 focal person in each of the 10 administrative regions of the country. No matter in which area of the country a disaster happens, all these organs look up to DPC in Yaounde for general coordination and resources, because the regional and divisional chairs have no resources earmarked to instantly respond to disasters (Buh et al. 2012). A lot more attention is focused on response, which is only one of the 4 phases of a disaster management cycle, to with: prevention (or mitigation), preparedness, response and recovery (Warﬁeld 2001). The Cameroon disaster management system is therefore an administratively overburden, highly 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards centralized top-bottom reactive scheme where most often times measures are taken and funds mobilized only when a disaster has happened. (4) One of the conclusions of GEADIRR while working with local communities in the regions was that these frontliners, traditional stakeholders and the civil society are not involved in knowledge creation and decision-making on matters of disaster risk reduction in Cameroon. The current legislation is silent on this (Buh et al. 2012; Bang 2013). (5) The laws in Table 2 lay the legislative groundwork for the establishment of a national disaster risk map in the country, by demanding that risk zones be identified and recommendations made on disaster risk prevention and preparedness measures. However, the 2012 flood disaster in the northern regions of the country had to happen for the President to again make the request. During the floods, the Maga agricultural dam constructed in 1979 was severely weakened. Col- lapse of the dam would have affected the about 120,000 people living on the Chari–Logone flood plane. A 25-km dyke in Logone was swept away by the flood waters, together with the agriculture and livelihoods of the nearby communities. Establishment of a national disaster risk map would, among other issues, involve an assessment of the safety levels of (especially old) embankment dams and their associated infrastructure like dykes. (6) Of the many landslides and floods that have happened in Cameroon, those of Limbe in 2001 have been the best studied from a causative (Che et al. 2011, 2012) and disaster risk management (Buh 2009; Buh et al. 2012; Diko 2012; Kometa 2012; Ndelle and Belle 2014; Bang 2012) perspectives. From all these studies, and our field surveys, a reasonable conclusion is that if the same thing were to happen today in the same place, there will be more casualties and material destruction than before. (7) The activities of monitoring (e.g., installation and running of early warning systems), and timid preparedness (e.g., disaster information dissemination to vulnerable populations via outreach activities) that we discuss above (Sect. 5.2) for Lakes Nyos/Monoun and Mt. Cameroon areas, were initiated and carried out mainly by national research (IRGM) and university (University of Buea) institutions, in collaboration with foreign mainly academic and research partners. The disaster risk management focal point for Cameroon currently does not have the needed human and infrastructural capacity to initiate and coordinate such projects. (8) Currently, there is no comprehensive and easily accessible disaster risk database in Cameroon. The only information is a series of narrative activity reports on the state of civil defense, produced between 2002 and 2012 (MINATD 2010). Not only are these documents not available to vulnerable people in the disaster-affected local communities (Ndelle and Belle 2014), the information they contain falls short of being used to make any meaningful scientific analysis (human/material losses, economic impact, projections, etc.) of the Cameroon disaster situation. Backed by the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) and the Louvain Catholic University in Belgium, the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) maintains a worldwide database on natural disasters (EM-DAT) from 1900 to the present (EM-DAT 2015). EM-DAT data for Cameroon are scanty. Almost 6 years after the northern floods, a comprehensive post-disaster assessment of infrastructure, physical and durable assets across all sectors of economic activity has not been made. There is therefore no data as can be used to assist government mainstream disaster risk reduction into her development strategy. (9) The analysis made above shows that current laws on disaster risk management in Cameroon have not delivered the expected results. Previous workers on this problem (Buh et al. 2012; Bang 2012, 2014; Ndelle and Belle 2014) came to the same conclusion. Therefore, a new more proactive bottom-top decen- tralized disaster management framework is required, one that is development-oriented, with objectives to first of all statistically document all past disasters, each with its economic implications; then identify all potential hazards and take timely and appropriate 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards measures to prevent them from becoming disasters; prepare for emergencies; increase coping capacities; and reduce vulnerabilities for frontliners and all people and property.

5.4 Looking ahead: a proposal

Her poverty reduction strategy paper earmarks a development vision for Cameroon to become a newly industrialized country by 2035 (MINEPAD 2009). Within this framework, the government is undertaking many infrastructural development projects (Kribi deep seaport, Lom Panga hydroelectric dam, inter-country regional roads and sports stadia, etc.). Given her disaster risk profile briefly described in Sect. 2 of this paper (see Fig. 1, Table 3), given the increasing trend of hydro-meteorological and natural hazards in the world, and in Sub Sahara Africa particularly (including Cameroon) (Bhavnani et al. 2010), and given the fact that some of these disasters like gas explosions from volcanic lakes are unique to Cameroon, the call cannot come later for the country to mainstream disaster risk reduction into her development agenda if the development has to result in the targeted poverty alleviation and lead to a sustainable improvement in people’s livelihoods. Investing on disaster risk reduction will be cost-effective because, in addition to saving irreplaceable human lives, it is estimated that every dollar (&CFA 500) spent on reducing disaster risks saves between US$ 2–4 (&CFA 1000–2000) that would otherwise be spent on disaster relief and rehabilitation (Bhavnani et al. 2010). For this to happen, the country’s disaster risk management framework needs to be revised. We propose the creation of a new autonomous statutory body to manage disaster risks in Cameroon. Such a NAtional Disaster RIsk Management Agency (NADRIMA) will include departments like hazard and risk mapping (insurmountable prerequisite for), disaster planning; research and forecasting (to analyze causal factors of disasters and make proposals, e.g., climate modeling, floods, lakes, volcanoes and earthquakes); search and rescue; administration; human and infrastructural capacity building (development of early warning systems); and relief and rehabilitation. It will reflect the whole disaster risk management cycle

Table 3 Propsed zonation of Cameroon and hazards risks. Sources: this work, GEADIRR (2009), Buh et al. (2012), Bang (2014)

Disaster risk Zone I Zone II Zone III Adminitsative Region FN NT AD CEN ST ET LIT NW SW WT Floods Epidemics Drought Market/bush fires Automobile accidents Landslides Gas explosions from lakes Volcanic eruptions Insect infestations Earthquakes Industrial accidents Wind storms Sea level rise Food insecurity Conflicts Administrative regions are: FN Far North, NT North, AD Adamoua, CEN Center, ST South, ET East, LIT Littoral, NW Northwest, SW Southwest, WT West 123 Author's personal copy

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(prevention, preparedness, response and recovery) and not be limited to civil protection, the traditional role of which is in disaster response and recovery (Gaetani et al. 2008). It will implicitly involve relevant ministerial departments and other national stakeholders like indigenous peoples, elected local people’s representatives, community groups, relevant responsible civil society organizations, research institutes and the universities, and also 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards b Fig. 11 Map of Cameroon (Digital Elevation Model - DEM) showing the proposed zones of activity for NADRIMA. Disasters do not respect administrative boundaries, but are controlled by the geology, geography, socio-economy and climate regime of a particular locality. These are similar in each of the proposed 3 zones (e.g., Neba 1990; Molua and Lambi 2007; Toteu et al. 2004), so in addition to cross-zonal threats, each zonal ofﬁce will have to worry about particular disaster risks in their zone (Table 3). For example, so far, drought mainly affects zone I (Sahel region), destructive wind storms affect zones I and II, gas explosions from crater lakes and volcanic eruptions are particular to zone III (due to presence of the Cameroon Volcanic Line), landslides and sea level rise to zones III (coastal area) and II

international development partners involved in disaster risk reduction matters in the country (UNISDR, EU, UNDP, UNICEF, WHO, WFP). Once established, it will start with a nationwide risk identification and mapping, leading to the creation of a detailed, comprehensive and readily accessible national disaster risk database that can be used among other needs, to assess the impact of disasters on people, the economy, and on development projects, and to develop disaster reduction strategies that must be in-built into the development process. The current legislation contains the necessary framework but will have to be reviewed to include detailed stipulations regarding specific objectives, timelines, guiding principles and strategies for each key stakeholder, as well as detailed inter-sectoral relationships. Cameroon is divided administratively into 10 regions, 58 divisions and 373 urban and local councils. In as much as NADRIMA must have a local community-driven bottom-top approach to disaster risk management, for cost-effective purposes however, NADRIMA need not be represented in all 373 councils or even the 58 divisions. We suggest that for a start NADRIMA has one central coordinating body, but 3 zonal offices, each with an appropriate degree of leverage in administration and on its budget assigned based on the disaster risk profile of the zone (Fig. 11, Table 3). Disaster-prone areas will be clearly and detaily delineated in each zone by the zonal offices so that appropriately tailored disaster risk information can be disseminated to, and where needed (e.g., Zone I), local community-centered disaster early warning systems (Langberg 2013) installed to promote a proactive community-based resilience and disaster prevention framework. Such a revision will meet the expectations of the Sendai framework for disaster risk reduction post-2015 priority for action no. 2, i.e., strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk (SFA 2015).

6 Conclusions

In order to evaluate from a civil society perspective, how governments implemented the goals of the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA), ‘building the resilience of nations and communities to disasters,’ the Global Network of Civil Society Organizations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR) carried out 3 worldwide projects in 2009, 2011 and 2013 dubbed ‘Views from the Frontline (VFL).’ Cameroon was one of the 57 countries (23 from Africa, including 9 from West Africa) that participated in the VFL 2013 project on everyday disasters, community resilience and disaster preparedness. Geotechnology, Environmental Assessment and Disaster Risk Reduction (GEADIRR) coordinated the work of 6 other civil society organizations to administer 400 questionnaires on 14 disaster indicators that assessed underlying causes of disasters and the community’s level of preparedness and resilience. The questionnaires were administered to frontliners in 7 of the 10 administrative regions of the country, and 89% of the informants responded. Final survey scores show that Cameroon occupied the 43rd position globally, was 15th out of the 23 African countries, and was 7th out of the 9 West African countries surveyed. Cameroon average scores for all 14 indicators were lower than the West African average, suggesting that a lot more effort is 123 Author's personal copy

Nat Hazards needed in managing disaster risks in the country. At the national level, the Center and Adamaoua regions recorded the lowest scores of the survey. Above-average scores recorded for some indicators in the Southwest, Northwest and Far North Regions are interpreted to be due to disaster prevention activities like monitoring via early warning systems, and outreach exercises carried out on disasters (floods, gas explosions from lakes, volcanic eruptions) in these areas. An analysis of the of laws governing disaster risk reduction in Cameroon and the practical application of the laws show that expected results have not been attained because the scheme is over-centralized and reactive, rather than proactive. If the goal earmarked in her development vision to become a newly industrialized nation by 2035 will to be realized, Cameroon has to mainstream disaster risk reduction into her development agenda for the development to result in the targeted poverty alleviation and lead to a sustainable improvement in people’s livelihoods. For this to happen, the country’s disaster risk management framework needs to be improved. We propose the creation of an autonomous statutory National Disaster Risk Management Agency (NADRIMA) with 3 zonal offices, each of which should be given an appropriate degree of leverage in administration and on its budget, fixed based on the disaster risk profile of the zone. By doing this, Cameroon will, in addition to adopting a disaster-sensitive development approach, also be forfilling the post-2015 Sendai framework priority of action no. 2 (strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk) and also be ready to face the challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2015).

Acknowledgements As we finished the first draft of this article (Sat April 25, 2015), thousands of Chilians were grappling with the eruption of Calbuco volcano. A 7.8 magnitude earthquake had just hit central Nepal that Saturday morning and the deads from the earthquake were still being counted. We dedicate this article to them and send our heart-felt condolences to those who lost their love ones in yet another major disaster these last years, after the 2011 earthquake and resulting tsunami that caused devastation in eastern Japan. We thank GNDR, particularly Marcus Oxley and Regine Nagel, for commissioning GEADIRR as the Cameroon national coordinating organization and for providing material and logistic support to carry out the work. All other national and regional coordinating organizations (NCOs and RCOs) from West and Central Africa are acknowledge for sharing ideas, either online or during regional and global meetings. The collective effort of all Participating Organizations (POs) in Cameroon enabled us to increase the number of administered questionnaires by up to 42% from 206 in VFL-2011. We are grateful to all of them listed in Table 1. We are also thankful to all questionnaire respondents: local administrators, divisional officers, subdivisional officers, mayors, quarter heads, chiefs, police/gendarme officers, doctors, nurses, school teachers and indeed everyone from all the 7 regions that participated in the survey. We also thank those CSOs that did not work directly as POs but that supported the process. Discussions with Mr. C. Kengne of DPC are heartily acknowledged. Part of this work was presented by AFT during the 11th annual Asia Oceania Geoscience Society meeting that held in Sapporo (Japan) in August 2014. We acknowledge suggestions from 2 anonymous reviewers that helped to improve the manuscript. Work on Lakes Nyos and Monoun is coordinated by the Cameroon Institute for Geological and Mining Research (IRGM) and carried out in collaboration with university scientists and institutions from Japan: Tokai, Toyama and other universities, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), especially within the framework of SATREPS-NyMo project; America: Michigan University, Office for Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) and US Geological Survey (USGS); France: Savoie University and French Embassy in Yaounde. The VLIR project was supported by the Universities of Buea (Cameroon) and Ghent (Belgium).

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