Covid-19 forces Cameroon to suspend sport hunting

• Date de Publication : 0000-00-00

(Agence Ecofin) - The Minister of Forests and Wildlife, Jules Doret Ndongo (photo), signed on April 20, a press release informing of the suspension of the 2019-2020 hunting season throughout Cameroon, until again. Reason: the Covid-19 pandemic which has raged in the country since March 2020. “This decision is the first economic consequence of the covid-19 pandemic in the Fauna sub-sector which generated in 2019, 835,218,699 FCFA. The trend in sport hunting, however, foreshadowed a good season with increasing revenues, estimated at 190 million FCFA in March 2020 against 162 million in March 2019 ”, explains the ministry. This administration adds that the shortfall for Cameroon will therefore be significant and will have serious consequences on the functioning of the municipalities bordering the hunting zones which derive significant income from leasing taxes. In recent years, the sector's revenues have been steadily increasing. As proof, during the 2018-2019 hunting season, Cameroon recorded wildlife revenues amounting to 696 million FCFA, up 7.7% compared to the previous season. The activity, according to Minfof, was predominant in the hunting areas of interest of Adamawa, the North, and the East. “In the Adamawa and North areas, the shooting plan covers 33,557 animals. The number of animals collected from these areas is 773. The main species are: Eland Derby (99), buffaloes (83), Waterbucks (55) and baboons (33). In the eastern hunting zone, the shooting plan covers 1,147 animals, ”explains the Ministry of Wildlife. S.A