Paper short abstract:
This paper examines the unintended consequences of a development project by focusing on (a) the process of accumulation by different actors in local communities, and (b) the process of dispossession of the major means of social reproduction, with socio-economic consequences.
Paper long abstract:
Worth US$4.2 billion, the Chad-Cameroon pipeline—a 1,100 km pipeline for crude oil running from southern Chad, through tropical forest, to Cameroon's Atlantic coast—was the biggest development project in Africa when it was completed in 2003. It was funded on condition that 72% of oil royalties, as per an agreement with the World Bank, be spent, with international supervision, on roads, schools, and hospitals. Over ten years since the completion of the project, what has been its impact on targeted communities? In Cameroon, the project has led to social conflicts and deprived local indigenous communities of territorial resources and traditional livelihood. In Chad, local residents have not benefited from the project, as revenues have been diverted to the ruling elite and the purchase of weapons to ensure the regime's survival. This paper examines the unintended consequences of the project by focusing on (a) the process of accumulation by different actors in local communities, and (b) the process of dispossession of the major means of social reproduction, with socio-economic consequences in terms of livelihood transformation and inequalities. In sum, this paper brings to the fore new patterns of accumulation, social reproduction, and differentiation.