Fuel Wood Supply in Bamenda II Subdivision, North West Region of Cameroon

The mid-1980s’ economic crisis in Cameroon led to poverty and high rates of unemployment. This phenomenon forced many people to fuel wood exploitation as a source of income and employment. More than 3/4 of the population of Bamenda II has limited access to modern energy sources such as domestic gas and so has resorted to the use of fuel wood as their major source of cooking energy. This study has as an objective to assess the role of fuel wood as an energy source in the Bamenda II Municipality. The methodology consisted of data collection from households, fuel wood vendors, public and private institutions. A random sampling of 140 households was obtained from the study area and questionnaires were administered. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, with the use of SPSS and GIS using ARGIS Software. This enabled the following results: The fuel wood in Bamenda II is supplied more from outside the Sub- Division than local sources like Bali, Santa, amongst others. Over 128,544 tons of firewood is consumed by households per annum. The beneficial aspects of firewood consumption are manifested in its socio-economic gains by vendors such as improvement in living standards and stimulation of savings. The major negative implication noted was that of loss of resources and air pollution which can be ameliorated via afforestation and the use of improved stoves.