Economic Empowerment of Mbororo Youth in Cameroon - Extreme North

The MDAO project entitled “Economic Empowerment of Mbororo Youth in Cameroon” took place on Saturday the 22nd December 2018 at the CMPJ of Maroua. It brought together 418 participants and was facilitated by; Bainamndi Daliwa Joseph (MWF 2017), Minda Virginie (MWF 2018), and Boumnzina David (YALI Network).

The session started with words of welcome by Mrs. Nini PAWA Jeannine, Director of the CMPJ who presented the center and opportunities available for local youth. This was followed by 4 presentations, the first of which was given by Dr. Jean Pierre and Mrs. Adjaratou who were staff of the Maroua Regional Hospital. They spoke of the crucial role of healthy sexual behaviour in preventing HIV, and of the unmet needs of contraception in this part of the country. The next presentation was by Daliwa Joseph, a 2017 Mandela Washington fellow from Purdue university trained in business and entrepreneurship track. He presented on how to have a strong NGO, write a winning project for international grants and get skills in Monitoring and evaluation. He also spoke about the various Scholarships/fellowship fund by the US embassy as well as the criteria of selection, eligibility and deadlines. He ended by sharing links of various programs.

The next presentation was by Minda Virginie, a 2018 Mandela Washington fellow who had just returned from the US-based fellowship. She spoke on Managing projects and the advantage in having a background in psychology when running an NGO. She also talked about the importance of community engagement and the role of youths in improving their communities.

The last presentation was by Boumzina David, member of YALI network of Maroua. He spoke about the Sustainable Development Goals and their importance in guiding and orienting developmental activities on the continent. He also spoke about his personal experience in using the SDG to guide his activities in is community. 

The presentations were interactive and were all followed by question and answer sessions. The day ended with a closing remark from Mrs. Nini and sharing of contact details between the facilitators and the participants.