The Right to Public Participation in Environmental Decision Making in Cameroon: An Appraisal on the Legal Framework

It is a commonplace that environmental degradations is alarming and keeps rising at a high pace in the contemporary and digitalized world and constitutes a threat not only to human health but slowing down economic growth and development. Developing countries in general and Cameroon in particular is not freed from this global and common problem and will likely persist and even intensify unless there is a change in the political will to fully involve the population in environmental decision-making processes at every level. This therefore means that the role of the citizens in protecting the environment stretches far beyond designing effective environmental standards, since the timid and discriminate involvement of the populations in environmental decision-making process and coupled with the overall ineffective and corrupt government practices appears to undermine citizens’ involvement for critical environmental policymaking. In effect, the right to public participation in environmental decision making in Cameroon as contained in international instruments and national legislations seems to remain on papers. In this present circumstance, a much needed reform is required for a proper implementation of the right to public participation in environmental decision making process in Cameroon.