Issues and challenges of the development of agriculture as a development strategy in west Cameroon

Cameroon has both human and geographical potential to comfortably address the issue of development. However, these are not always fully exploited. This research sets out to question the policies, challenges, as well as agricultural and food strategies put in place since the colonial period, and their impact on the issues of economic development in the West region Cameroon. What are the strategies and objectives of agricultural and food development that were set up in this region between 1916 and 2016? Interdisciplinary, the methodological approach used is that of research in economic and social history. This led us to identify our field of study and to develop practical operating procedures for the processing of the data collected. Findings show that the West region of Cameroon has agricultural and food potential changing constantly. Underexploited, they can help the county to develop the agricultural sector in order to further boost the economy, and in turn limit imports of food that can be produced, processed and consumed at the national and international levels. The region has indeed experienced agricultural and food policies and changes since the colonial era. Cash crop such as coffee and others largely influenced the agricultural orientations and practices with a great impact on eating habits during the post-colonial period from 1980 to 1993.