**2.4 Individual questionnaire**

*Natural Hazards - Risk, Exposure, Response, and Resilience*

IV Humid Rainforest with monomodal

V Humid Forest with bimodal rainfall

*Cameroon geo-ecological zones and surface areas.*

**Table 1.**

rainfall pattern (maritime coast)

pattern (Tropical forest)

geographical position of the zone, it has a distinctively dry climate as compared to the rest of the country with a single and short rainy season of about 4 months reaching its peak in August and a very severe and lengthy dry season of up to 7 months or more as one progresses up north from the Mandara Mountains. The annual mean rainfall ranges from 400 mm in the northern part to 1100 mm in the southern part

**SN Geo-ecological zones Regions Surface** 

I Sudano-Sahelian Upland North and Far North 100,353

III Western Highlands West and North West 31,192

Total 466,050

and Lom and Djerem Division

Littoral and South West Regions 45,658

Centre, South and East Regions 165,770

II High Guinean savannah Adamawa Region, Mbam Division

**areas (km2 )**

123,077

On the other hand, the Western Highlands is located between latitudes 5°40′ and 7° north and between longitudes 9°45′ and 11°10′ east. The zone is characterized by relief of massifs and mountains. It features several dormant volcanoes, including Mt. Oku and Mt. Bamboutos. A cool temperate-like climate, influenced mainly by mountainous terrain and rugged topography also characterizes the region. Average rainfall is about 2400 mm, temperatures averaging between 23 and 32° [19]. There are two main seasons; the rainy season which starts from mid-March and ends in mid-November and dry season from Mid-November to mid-March. The dry season is characterized by the harmattan with dry air. Forests once largely covered the Western Highlands but because of the influence of anthropomorphic activities the forests were progressively cleared for farmland and grazing, and today, only patches remain. Although small,

Study participants were limited to the study areas; were of both sexes (male and female), aged 20 years and above and had been in the area for at least 10 years; and must have witnessed at least one flood and/or drought event. Data were collected from flood victims in 14 communities of the Western Highlands; and 17 droughtonly communities, and 10 floods and droughts affected communities in the Sudano-

Three Social Science instruments were used for data collection to ensure accurate and reliable data in order to attain the study objective. The combined approach was used in collecting the data. Three instruments (individual questionnaires, Focus Group Discussion (FGDs) guides and In-depth interview guides) were employed in collecting both quantitative and qualitative data to investigate the

of the zone with an average temperature of up to 28° [25].

these patches are recognized as globally important sites for conservation.

**166**

**2.2 Study population**

Sahelian geo-ecological zone.

**2.3 Data collection**

research question.

This was a structured questionnaire used to collect quantitative data from 2024 different floods and droughts household heads or their representatives. It was developed to understand victims' perceptions and to identify the factors that influence their adoption of specific coping strategies in situations of floods and/or droughts. Socio-demographic information was collected as well. Questionnaires were administered to respondents on a face to face basis after obtaining their consent. We had two sets of questionnaires designed for the purpose of this study: one for floods victims and the other for drought victims.
