Community Forest Enterprises (CFEs) as Successful Social Enterprises: Empirical Evidence from Cameroon

Summary

Community Forest Enterprises (CFEs) play a crucial role in forest management, aiming to combine social well-being, economic development, and environmental sustainability. Pursuing these diverse objectives means they differ from traditional profit-maximizing firms and face challenges related to their capacity, performance, and governance. This thesis uses the social enterprise lens to enhance the understanding of CFEs in Cameroon.

The study reveals that 63% of CFEs operate as non-profit organizations with income-generating activities, while only 11% could be categorised as social enterprises. The majority perform better on environmental and social dimensions than on economic dimensions. The importance of individual community members' skills and knowledge, and capacities for resource mobilization and networking was highlighted. Paradoxes in how they perform in social, economic, and environmental dimensions, as well as in belonging and learning, were identified.

To develop CFEs into successful social enterprises, significant government engagement and investment in improved rural infrastructure, the entrepreneurial environment, and strengthened capacities and governance are recommended.