Firm size and pro-environmental behavior in Cameroon

Abstract

Previous studies indicate a lack of analysis of pro-environmental behavior adoption in enterprises of various sizes. Very small enterprises, especially in the informal sector, have always been overlooked in the literature, although they are in the majority in most countries. This paper aims to examine the effects of firm size on pro-environmental behavior adoption in Cameroon. The analysis focuses on a sample of 141,926 firms drawn from the Second General Census of Enterprises (RGE-2) in Cameroon (NIS, 2018). The study adopted a statistical and econometrical approach based on the logit model. The results showed that the adoption of pro-environmental behavior increases with firm size. The probability of having a health, safety, and environment system increases by 16.70 points in large enterprises compared to 8.40 points in small enterprises. The probability of having a wastewater management system increases by 5.30 points in large enterprises compared to 2.30 points in small enterprises. The probability of having an air pollution management system increases by 2.20 points in large enterprises compared to 1.50 points in small enterprises. However, company size does not significantly influence the adoption of a solid waste management system. It is recommended to (i) raise awareness among large companies of the challenges of environmental protection and to strengthen controls on compliance with environmental standards, and (ii) to implement actions aimed at the migration of companies from the informal to the formal sector.

Keywords

• air pollution management
• firm size
• health safety and environment system
• solid waste management
• wastewater management