Liaising Water Resources Consumption, Urban Sanitation and Cholera Epidemics in Douala, Cameroon: A Community Vulnerability Assessment

The occurrence of cholera on the Atlantic coast of Cameroon, especially in Douala is not just a public health crisis but a humanitarian disaster as well. From 2010 to 2012, 23,000 people contracted cholera of which 843 died. Based on a field inventory (2010, 2011 and 2012 epidemiological periods), this study posits that, cholera endemic heavily impacts the younger age groups, with the young adult and adult age groups being the most vulnerable. As concerns sex, the males are far more vulnerable than females. Cholera risk factors such as slum settlements, lack of proper social amenities and services, for example, potable water; drainage; waste collection; hygiene and sanitation facilities, are generally spread throughout the Atlantic coast, though characterized by glaring unevenness. Social characteristics not generally considered in public health strategies, including: attitudes towards hygiene and sanitation; limited knowledge of diseases/cholera transmission mechanisms, as well as “magico-religious” beliefs on the origins of cholera, are, however reasons for the high vulnerability to cholera and/or major hindrances to effective mitigation. Though there appears to be a direct relationship between the existence of cholera risk factors and community vulnerability, it might be deduced that social attitudes and beliefs are the bridge linking these two concepts. Keywords: Water resources consumption, Cholera epidemics, Sanitation, Community vulnerabilit

Sustainable Development Challenges in Cameroon Estuarine complex and Opportunities for Integrated Management: Focus on the fisheries sector

摘要 海岸带地区，通常被视为世界上拥有巨大财富和具有社会经济发展前景的地区。众多较具生产力的农业种植活动及其他以传统资源为基础的活动如沿海渔业、养殖业、林业等都位于河流三角洲和沿海平原地区。周边还存在如工业，航运，旅游和采矿等活动。像其他许多发展中国家一样，喀麦隆的经济仍然处于完全依赖自然资源以及庞大的人口劳动力密度资源特别是年轻人。但这些国家和地区都拥有了许多自然资源，特别是海岸带和海洋生态系统。而海岸带地区一般都是当代和后代的社会经济发展前景很好的中心地区。 本论文重点调查研究了喀麦隆河口地区复杂的生态系统，包括泄湖、红树林、溪流、泥流、沙坝、沼泽地带等生态系统的现状，特别是渔...Abstract The economy of Cameroon as well as most other developing countries is still entirely natural resource-based, necessitating huge population concentrations, especially of youthful age groups, in areas endowed with such natural resources, especially coastal and marine ecosystems. Estuarine areas for example are centres of great socio-economic prospects for current and future generations. T...学位：理学硕士院系专业：海洋与海岸带发展研究院_海洋事务学号：2232009115418

A systematic study of zooplankton-based indices of marine ecological change and water quality: Application to the European marine strategy framework Directive (MSFD)

Marine zooplankton are central components of holistic ecosystem assessments due to their intermediary role in the food chain, linking the base of the food chain with higher trophic levels. As a result, these organisms incorporate the inherent properties and changes occurring atall levels of the marine ecosystem, temporally integrating signatures of physical and chemical conditions. For this reason, zooplankton-based biometrics are widely accepted as useful tools for assessing and monitoring the ecological health and integrity of aquatic systems. The European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (EU-MSFD) requires the use of different types of bio-monitors, including zooplankton, to monitor progress towards achieving specific environmental and water quality targets in EU. However, there is currently no comprehensive synthesis of zooplankton indices development, use, and associated challenges. We addressed this issue with a two-step approach. First, we formulated the indicator-metrics-indices cycle (IMIC) to redefine the closely related but often ambiguously utilized terms - indicator, metric and index, highlighting the convergence between them and the iterative nature of their interaction. Secondly, we formulated frameworks for synthesizing, presenting and systematically applying zooplankton indices based on the IMIC framework. The main benefits of the IMIC are twofold: 1). to disambiguate the key elements: indicators, metrics, and indices, revealing their links to an operational ecological indicator system, and 2) to serve as an organizing tool for the coherent classification of indices according to the MSFD descriptors. Using the IMIC framework, we identified and described two broad categories of indices namely the core biodiversity indices already in use in the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic regions, including the ‘Zooplankton Mean Size and Total Stock (zooplankton MSTS)’ and 'Plankton Lifeforms index (PLI)', and stressor-response indices retrieved from the existing literature, elucidating their applicability to different MSFD descriptors. Finally, major challenges of developing new indices and applying existing ones in the context of the MSFD were critically addressed and some solutions were proposed

The Governance of Knowledge: Perspectives from Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia

The paper revisits the concept of knowledge governance by drawing on the experience of building knowledge clusters in two countries; Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam. It explores the strategies by which a country may take up the governance of knowledge, in the context of avoiding the knowledge trap drawing on experiences of Southeast Asian countries. We posit that an investigation of knowledge governance would require a study of the formal and informal institutional arrangements allowing knowledge flows in a cluster. The flow of tacit knowledge in particular may still require spatial proximity. We move on to explore the different perspectives of learning from the strategies of building knowledge clusters in Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Peninsular Malaysia and Brunei Muara District - Brunei Darussalam. Our research builds the foundation for knowledge governance inquiry by studying the spatial distribution of manpower and the science network of universities, in this case Universiti Sains Malaysia, with external knowledge producing organizations. Learning from the experience of the Northern Corridor and Multi Media Corridor in Malaysia, we have discussed our preliminary analysis of knowledge clusters in Brunei Muara District - Brunei Darussalam. Results of the analysis highlights that indeed there is increasing clustering of organizations such as private companies and government agencies in Brunei Muara District yet knowledge sharing is still lacking. We intend to follow up the study of Brunei Muara District knowledge cluster by focusing on the ICT (Information Communication and Technology) knowledge base. We end with a summary on the conclusions and recommendations for developing a knowledge base in Brunei Darussalam

Waterlogged but Thirsty: a Case Study of the Relationship between Water management and Health in Cameroon

This paper gives an illustrative view of Cameroon's abundant water resources which unfortunately due to the lack of comprehensive information, an inadequate legal and institutional framework, weak enforcement capacity, poor coordination among agencies and other obstacles to sound, sustainable water management, the country faces serious degradation and depletion of water resources. Consequently, the country suffers from a host of water-related problems, in the form of outbreaks of epidemics

The Governance of Knowledge: Perspectives from Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia

The paper revisits the concept of knowledge governance by drawing on the experience of building knowledge clusters in two countries; Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam. It explores the strategies by which a country may take up the governance of knowledge, in the context of avoiding the knowledge trap drawing on experiences of Southeast Asian countries. We posit that an investigation of knowledge governance would require a study of the formal and informal institutional arrangements allowing knowledge flows in a cluster. The flow of tacit knowledge in particular may still require spatial proximity. We move on to explore the different perspectives of learning from the strategies of building knowledge clusters in Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Peninsular Malaysia and Brunei Muara District - Brunei Darussalam. Our research builds the foundation for knowledge governance inquiry by studying the spatial distribution of manpower and the science network of universities, in this case Universiti Sains Malaysia, with external knowledge producing organizations. Learning from the experience of the Northern Corridor and Multi Media Corridor in Malaysia, we have discussed our preliminary analysis of knowledge clusters in Brunei Muara District - Brunei Darussalam. Results of the analysis highlights that indeed there is increasing clustering of organizations such as private companies and government agencies in Brunei Muara District yet knowledge sharing is still lacking. We intend to follow up the study of Brunei Muara District knowledge cluster by focusing on the ICT (Information Communication and Technology) knowledge base. We end with a summary on the conclusions and recommendations for developing a knowledge base in Brunei Darussalam