The International NGO, Smallholder Acceleration and REDD+ Programme (SHARP, in collaboration with the World Wide Fund for Nature Cameroon, WWF, and PROFOREST represented in Cameroon by the Rain Forest Alliance have reached some modules aimed at building a more profitable partnership between the big oil palm producers in Cameroon and small holder farmers.

The modules were the results of a two-day workshop that held in Limbe from Thursday, May 7, on the subject: “Partnership between agro-industry and small palm oil producers: what partnership models for Cameroon?”

In effect, Cameroon is one of the major palm oil producers within the CEMAC region and boasts of big agro-industrial producers like the Cameroon Development Corporation, CDC, PAMOL in the Ndian Division, SOCAPALM in the Littoral and, today, SG SOC in the Kupe Manenguba, Meme and parts of Manyu Divisions.

Within the vicinities of these big oil palm producers exist several small holder farmers who have been entertaining some sort of a partnership. But according to SHARP, WWF and the Rain Forest Alliance-the organizers, there is need for a concrete and more sustainable partnership to be developed between the industrial oil palm producers and the small scale producers if the future of this industry in Cameroon has to become more profitable to both parties in the sector and, more0so, to the business of reducing the threats to conservation if such partnerships are not working.

The Programme Manager of the WWF Coastal Forests Programme, Dr Philip Forboseh, speaking on behalf of the WWF Country Director, said during the opening session that “arguably if smallholder producers can achieve better returns per unit area, we can expect a brighter future for all in the sector and less threat to food security, our wildlife heritage, their habitats and ecosystem services.”

On behalf of SHARP, Mr Christian Mensah, coming in from Ghana, told the well over 20 participant smallholders and agro-industrial representatives from CDC and SG SOC that he had not come with any fixed models as such. “SHARP is a platform created to accelerate the development of responsible smallholders… The emphasis in Cameroon is to think with you what modules have been successful in Cameroon.

I will share with you on some from Ghana. I’m here to dialogue,” he said.And talking further to the press, he said their focus in Cameroon was to develop a “win-win partnership between the agro-industrial sector and the small holders.

What we seek to achieve is that the smallholders should have a higher productivity, higher income and be able to militate against the environmental impact.”