The Forest People without a Forest

Development interventions often generate contradictions around questions of who benefits from development and which communities are targeted for intervention. The Forest People without a Forest examines how the Baka, who live in Eastern Cameroon, assert forms of belonging in order to participate in development interventions, and how community life is shaped and reshaped through these interventions. Often referred to as 'forest people', the Baka have witnessed many recent development interventions that include competing and contradictory policies such as 'civilize', assimilate and integrate the Baka into 'full citizenship', conserve the forest and wildlife resources, and preserve indigenous cultures at the verge of extinction.

List of Figures
List of Acronyms
Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1. Pygmies amidst ‘development’ practices in Cameroon
Chapter 2. Claims to Belonging: A confrontation of two versions of belonging in East Cameroon
Chapter 3. Reconstructing ‘rootedness in the soil’ to authenticate belonging to the roadsides
Chapter 4. Internal differentiation and inequality among the Baka
Chapter 5. Development participation among the Baka in the East Region of Cameroon

Conclusion

Appendix
Bibliography
Index