Paper short abstract:

This paper qualitatively examines whether households and communities that have been directly affected by the Anglophone conflict have experienced a fall in their income and reduced economic opportunities. The results reveal that they have.

Paper long abstract:

Since 2016, the ongoing conflict in the English-speaking part of Cameroon has led to what the Norwegian Refugee Council has described as the world’s most neglected displacement crisis. This paper examines the economic impact of the Anglophone conflict as lived by those affected by the conflict. Most of the literature on the economic consequences of conflicts tends to focus on aggregate level data which provides little insight into the implications for households and communities that are directly affected by the conflict. In addition to the tragic loss of thousands of lives and the destruction of built infrastructure and farms, the Anglophone conflict has caused mass unemployment, driven up commodity prices and increased the already high levels of poverty in the North West and South West Regions. These regions have also lost their attractiveness for both local and international investors. Several humanitarian efforts are currently underway from national and international actors, including a reconstruction plan by the Cameroon government, but these have not had a significant impact as the conflict continues to drive more people out of business and work in the two regions. This study uses a qualitative research approach to uncover whether the households and communities that have been directly affected by the conflict have experienced a fall in their income and reduced economic opportunities. The results reveal that they have. Current efforts by the government and international organisations to address the economic setbacks of the conflict are unlikely to change the economic situation of the population and communities affected while the conflict continues. The findings of this study thus show that a peace process backed by all stakeholders is urgently needed to provide the preconditions for economic recovery in the North West and South West.