Effects of land tenure system changes on agricultural practices in the Western Highlands of Cameroon
William Shu Neba & Balgah Roland Azibo
Abstract
The study investigates the effects of land tenure system changes (LTS) on agricultural practices (AP) in rural and urban settings in the Western Highlands of Cameroon (WHC), as no comparative studies had been conducted on this topic in the WHC. This study challenges the urban-rural dichotomy in land governance, demonstrating how it influences agricultural practices. Primary data were collected from 520 respondents in rural and urban settings using a mixed-methods approach, including a semi-structured questionnaire, key informant interviews, and observations. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression were used to analyse data. Results revealed that, except for increased inter-ethnic conflicts (mean scores of 1.72 in urban and 1.62 in rural, p > 0.05) and resolving land disputes (mean scores of 1.77 in urban and 1.67 in rural, p = 0.011), the mean scores for all tested effects of LTS changes were higher in rural settings. A comparative analysis showed an increase in land prices in rural and urban settings (mean scores of 3.86/4 in rural and 3.61/4 in urban, respectively; p = 0.009). Regression analysis revealed that respondents' religious affiliation had a significant impact on LTS changes in urban settings (B = 0.726, p < 0.05), while in rural settings, respondents' educational levels were the most significant determinant (B = 0.528, p = 000). This implies that differences in LTS and APs in rural and urban settings suggest a strong influence of institutions in shaping such relationships.
Keywords
agriculture, urban-rural dichotomy, land governance, inter-ethnic conflicts
Author information & Contribution
William Shu Neba. Corresponding author. PhD. Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University Fort Har. Email: shuwlly@yahoo.com
Balgah Roland Azibo. Professor, University of Bamenda, College of Technology, Cameroon and Sol Plaatje University Kimberley, South Africa. Email: balgahroland@gmail.com
"All authors equally contributed to the conception, design, preparation, data gathering and analysis, and writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved of the final manuscript."
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Funding
This work was not supported by any funding.
AI Declaration
The author declares the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in writing this paper. In particular, the author used Quill Bot Paraphrasing tool in paraphrasing the manuscript and grammar checker. The author takes full responsibility in ensuring proper review and editing of content generated using AI.
Notes
This paper has been presented in 7th International Conference on Multidisciplinary Industry and Academic Research (ICMIAR), July 30 – 31, 2026, Shah Alam, Malaysia.
Acknowledgement
The authors sincerely acknowledge Late Professor Amungwa Athanasius Fonteh who was one of the main supervisors of this project but died shortly after the completion of the research. Also, to all the study participants who gave information during the data collection process.
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Cite this article:
Neba, W.S. & Azibo, B.R. (2026). Effects of land tenure system changes on agricultural practices in the Western Highlands of Cameroon. Industry and Academic Research Review, 4(1), 54-76. https://doi.org/10.53378/iarr.232
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