Collective action and promotion of forest based associations on non-wood forest products in Cameroon

This paper documents collective actions undertaken by forest-based associations to access better prices for their non-wood forest products via group sales. Group sales can increase the income of group sellers by up to 40 per cent compared to individual sellers. The institutionalisation of group sales reinforces social relations and cohesion as well as mutual trust. Group sales were found to be a key preliminary step in the development and growth of small and medium scale enterprises. The paper concludes that successful group sales require a strong commitment among members of forest-based associations. Key factors influencing collective actions are discussed.

The full article is available here:

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09614524.2012.714353