Cameroon: Bifaga fish, cost, scarce as dey destroy mangrove
Di Organisation for Environment and Sustainable Development, OPED, don say dis particular fish weh de di call'am Bifaga and mangrove get strong connection.
Jonas Kemajou Syapze wey be OPED Director, say when woman dem cut mangrove tree dem for fetch firewood for seka say burn fine, and give unique and fine taste and better colour for Bifaga, dey di destroy mangrove and fish no get good place for lay egg. E say dis wan fit be de reason weh for market dem for Yaoundé Bifaga don cost sotei and na few woman dem di still sell'am. Now so deh di sell three Bifaga for 500frs. "Ah di cook groundnut soup and banane malaxser with Bifaga because e di give taste for chop even if some pipo before-before di check say na for poor man, e don cost now past fresh fish, Lucy Nteme, woman weh e di buy de fish tok. We only know say dis fish dey scarce, but we no know why, na so Marlene Ingwari weh e di sell Bifaga for Acacia market tok. "Woman de depend for dis mangrove for get firewood, fish and crayfish but deh di contribute for destroy mangrove. Before woman di use 2.5kg for wood for smoke 1kg of fish", Kemayou explain. De taste deh unique, with fine colour for fish, and de wood di burn fine if e dry or dey wet, na why woman di laik for use mangrove, e add "Bifaga na de taste, and if de taste no dey, den no bi Bifaga", Kemayou tok. Kemayou explain say life for some coastal woman for Kribi side depend for mangrove, so OPED di make de woman and population for know de importance for mangrove. De solution for keep mangrove and still get de taste and colour for fish, OPED Director say na to, "teach woman dem for put plants laik masep, thin for fireside for get de same taste and for get de same kain colour laik for mangrove wood, so deh fit put de fish scale for fire. To get firewood OPED teach de woman dem for use dorty for kitchen, bark for plantain, cassava and coconut for smoke fish and de no use mangrove at all. All dis na for reduce pressure for mangrove. Magrove dey important because na here water biodiversity di produce. De kain water weh e dey mangrove fine for fish for lay egg because na mixture as water for sea and river di meet. Na for dis kain place weh fish di lay egg and if dey destroy mangrove e mean say fish no go lay plenty egg and woman no go get plenty fish. When coastal region no get fish, woman no get fish and de small wan weh e dey di cost well-well. Na cycle weh e no get end as deh cut mangrove fish di reduce and di cost, Kemayou tok. "We di try for restore mangrove for Kribi side, and we get support from di Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), World Wide Fund for Nature, WWF and odas for restore mangrove for de side for Polongue. Anoda project with GEF small grants for UNDP, and WWF for US for restore mangrove for Mpolongwe area for kribi side.