Farmers' organizations appear to play an ever-increasing role in Africa. In rural areas of Western Cameroon, which are severely affected by the crisis in the agro-export model, this movement relies mainly on small groups of farmers that test new technical and social production methods and search for common answers to their basic problems. In spite of the high motivation levels of some groups, results to date have been mixed. Moreover, the general scope of the movement is limited by a lack of coherence in some civil society organizations and backing institutions.