Colonial legacy of Nkoemvone agricultural station in southern Cameroon

In the lush landscapes of southern Cameroon, the remnants of colonial ambition still stand tall across a sprawling 300-hectare site, where only ten hectares remain cultivated. Once a hub of agricultural innovation, the Nkoemvone Agricultural Polyvalent Station, now under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, bears the scars of time. Its buildings, though dilapidated, continue to serve a vital purpose: the propagation and distribution of high-yield cocoa plantlets, a testament to its enduring agricultural legacy.

Established in 1944, the Nkoemvone Cocoa Experimental Station was conceived as a cornerstone of French colonial modernity. Historian Hélène Blais describes it as a quintessential “objet-jardin”—a botanical garden repurposed as a tool of colonial expansion. During the 20th century, the French colonial empire prioritized plant reproduction, relocating and introducing crops like cocoa to reshape agricultural practices in colonized societies. Though less documented than other stations such as Bambey in Senegal, Nkoemvone played a pivotal role in this broader strategy, aiming to alter the economic and social fabric of Cameroon.

Colonial modernization and agricultural experimentation

The global economic crisis of 1929 reshaped colonial policies, pushing the French administration to adopt a more interventionist approach. No longer content with extractive trade economies, the colonial state invested in infrastructure and export-oriented agriculture while addressing the welfare of colonized populations. This marked the emergence of a “developmentalist” colonial state, a shift solidified during the Brazzaville Conference of January 30 to February 8, 1944. Led by Charles de Gaulle, this conference aimed to revitalize the French economy while improving conditions for colonized peoples through planned development.

In the realm of agriculture, the dominant narrative framed African societies as fundamentally agrarian. Enhancing their well-being, the colonial administration believed, required boosting agricultural productivity through large-scale investments. This logic spurred the creation of numerous agronomic research institutions across the French Empire, with Cameroon emerging as a key testing ground. On June 8, 1944, French Cameroon Governor Eugène Paul Carras dissolved the Technical Council for Agriculture and Livestock, replacing it with three distinct services: Agriculture, Livestock, and Forestry. This reorganization underscored the administration’s commitment to dedicating resources exclusively to agriculture.

Agronomist Pierre Barthe, who headed the Agriculture Service in 1946, detailed in a report how this new structure included multiple sub-services, one of which focused on agronomic research. Among its institutions were three experimental stations in Dschang, Maroua, and Nkoemvone. While the first two were established during the interwar period, the Nkoemvone Cocoa Experimental Station was founded in 1944 as part of this broader modernization effort. It embodied the colonial state’s shift toward planned agricultural development.

From ambition to adversity: struggles in construction and labor

The establishment of the Nkoemvone Station faced formidable challenges. Initially, there was no formal decree outlining its purpose, according to agronomist Raymond Juliat, who led the Agriculture Service in 1944. Its primary objective was “the selection of cocoa trees to propagate only high-yield varieties.” By 1947, 300 hectares were requisitioned for the station, but construction stalled due to a lack of labor and materials, compounded by the absence of a comprehensive development plan. Despite these obstacles, the colonial administration reaffirmed its commitment to the station in 1948, formalizing its role through a regulatory text the following year. Construction finally began, funded by cocoa revenues.

Labor shortages proved a persistent hurdle. Jean Braudeau, the station’s director in 1949, noted in his annual report that insufficient staff prevented the construction of roads, a nursery, and 15 hectares of plantations. While some temporary workers from neighboring villages were hired on a task-by-task basis, the question of whether this labor was voluntary or coerced remained unclear. Although High Commissioner Renée Hoffherr had begun phasing out forced recruitment upon his arrival in 1947, historian Léon Kaptué points out that forced labor persisted until 1949. To attract workers from beyond the local area, the colonial administration built housing within the station—a common practice—ensuring that laborers could participate in both construction and agricultural research activities.

Agronomist Achille Pacilly, who succeeded Braudeau in 1949, recounted that a labor camp was initially set up with 20 huts made of local materials. By 1956, 58 permanent huts were constructed, housing 130 to 140 families by the early 1960s. This camp resolved the labor shortage, enabling the station to function at full capacity. In addition to housing for workers, the administration built staff quarters, research laboratories, potable water and electricity systems, an infirmary, and extensive facilities such as nurseries and cocoa variety collections. By 1959, on the eve of Cameroon’s independence, the station stood as a fully realized intersection of living spaces and scientific inquiry.

Propaganda and postcolonial transition

Beyond its scientific role, the Nkoemvone Station served as a propaganda tool for the French colonial administration. In the 1950s, Cameroon was marked by violent repression of Cameroonian nationalists, particularly in the cocoa-producing regions of southern Cameroon. The station became an instrument to win back the hearts and minds of the population. In 1958, journalist and French propaganda chief André Boyer produced a film titled “The Nkoemvone Cocoa Center,” intended to demonstrate the administration’s benevolence and counter nationalist movements. Boyer described the film’s purpose as “bringing wayward individuals back to normal life and convincing the masses of the government’s sincere nationalist actions.”

The station also served as a showcase for French colonial achievements. A 1958 United Nations report on French-administered Cameroon highlighted the station’s work in selecting high-yield cocoa varieties and distributing cuttings to farmers. The report concluded that the station had already achieved positive results, reinforcing the administration’s claims of progress and development.

After independence in 1960, Cameroon and France signed agreements allowing the former colonial power to retain influence over key institutions. These agreements provided for joint financing, research collaboration, and French involvement in the management of specialized institutes. The French administration continued to oversee the Nkoemvone Station, appointing former colonial agronomists like Jacques Liabeuf as directors. While this arrangement allowed Cameroon to focus on education and higher training, it also prolonged the station’s ties to colonial-era structures. French oversight ended only in 1975.

However, independence did not mark the beginning of a new era for the station. Instead, it heralded a gradual decline. The economic and social crises of the 1980s crippled Cameroon’s agricultural research, leading to financial stagnation and a reduction in scientific output. During the early 1990s, the station was repurposed as a polyvalent agronomic research center under the Institute for Agricultural Research for Development (Irad), established in 1996 and reorganized in 2002. Yet, structural reforms failed to reverse its decline. Natural disasters, such as the violent storm that struck in March 2006 and destroyed experimental plots, administrative buildings, and housing, further exacerbated the station’s deterioration.

The station’s very size, once a symbol of colonial ambition and extractivist visions, now became an obstacle to its revival. Financial constraints and the contradictions of postcolonial development have left the Nkoemvone Station in a state of neglect—a poignant reminder of the ambitious yet flawed visions of colonial modernity.