<PART1: Lifestyle of Hunter-Gatherers and History of Surrounding Farmers>Ethnic Movements in the Cross-Border Region of Southeast Cameroon: Oral History and Ethnogenesis of the Bakwele, a Bantu Farmers

This study examines the history of migration and the formation of settled villages of the Bakwele people living in the border region between the Republic of Cameroon and the Republic of the Congo, based on previous studies, administrative documents and oral history. In the southeast Cameroon, there are two groups of Bakwele people, the Djako and the Esel, inhabiting the study area. The former came from the northwestern region upstream of the Dja River, while the latter came from the northern region near Boumba Bek National Park. They came to this region through different routes and assimilation with neighboring ethnic groups. Their migrations occurred on several separate occasions and can be organized in chronological order into four periods: 1. the pre-colonial period; 2. the German colonial period to World War I; 3. the French colonial period; and 4. After the independence of the Republic of Cameroon to the start of logging company operations. These historical trajectories have significantly shaped the current political and economic landscape of the Bakwele in study area, influencing both their relationships and the region's overall development.