The social implications of COVID-19 on daily mobility in major cities in Africa. The case of Yaoundé and Douala (Cameroon)

Abstract

Mobility practices in Cameroon have changed considerably due to the rapid spread of COVID-19. Based on data collection in Yaoundé and Douala, the country’s main cities, which combined 878 questionnaires, 11 interviews and direct observation, this research analysed the mobility practices of city dwellers in a crisis context. Its results reveal social coping mechanisms in the face of the fear of contracting COVID-19. The context was marked by a series of aggravating, structural and cultural factors that influenced the choice of modes of daily travel or the option to remain confined. Four types of modal habits were identified, each responding to individual modal logics during the pandemic: users sensitive to the cost of transport, phobic users, local or short-distance users and exclusive circumstantial motorists.