This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed Cameroon – On a quiet Sunday afternoon at the Batouri District Hospital in eastern Cameroon Abdourahamane Diallo was preparing to go home when a motorbike rushed up to the maternity ward “She was bleeding profusely because of a uterine rupture and the mother required emergency surgery,” Dr She sought help only when she realized something was wrong the staff saw that her complications were serious and quickly evacuated her to the hospital in Batouri – nearly 40 km away She had arrived at one of the few hospitals in Cameroon with a fully functional operating theatre which had been renovated and fully equipped with support from UNFPA in 2013 Much of the hospital’s staff had gone home for the weekend “I was not supposed to do consultations or surgery.” Diallo had been brought to the hospital by UNFPA to train staff in reproductive health Only gynaecologists stationed in the region were authorized to perform surgeries “There was an emergency and no one to take care of the woman,” Dr He ended up performing the surgery himself – alone Maternal health care remains dangerously poor in much of Cameroon, which has the 12th highest maternal death rate in the world Few health facilities in the country are well staffed or properly equipped According to a recent survey conducted by UNFPA, out of 197 health centres, fewer than 10 had the capacity to provide quality emergency obstetric and neonatal care. This translates to 2.99 health centres able to provide quality emergency care per 500,000 people – well below the joint guidelines set by UNFPA The cost of emergency health supplies and services is another concern; many women avoid proper care because they fear they cannot afford it The Government of Cameroon is working with partners to improve women’s access to life-saving maternal health care Diallo have been deployed in the four regions where reproductive care is most needed they are training and supervising health personnel UNFPA specialists provided emergency obstetric training to more than 200 health staff.  The government is also working to lower the cost of quality maternal care supported by UNFPA and the French Development Agency ready-made delivery and Caesarean kits to health facilities around Cameroon These kits contain all the supplies needed to perform either a regular delivery or a Caesarean section delivery At $12 for a delivery kit and $80 for a Caesarean kit yet they cover the actual costs of the materials and services which will ensure women with labour complications no longer have to rely on motorbikes for emergency transport We use cookies and other identifiers to help improve your online experience. By using our website you agree to this, see our cookie policy Emmanuel Bonde was posthumously raised to the dignity of Grand Cordon of the Cameroonian Order of Merit during an official funeral accorded him on February 1 Наслаждайтесь азартом на любом устройстве! Скачайте мобильное приложение Vavada kz и играйте без блокировок Начните с приветственного бонуса и открывайте для себя турниры Offer your company and your employees the best information Take advantage of our preferential rates reserved for professionals Discover our digital subscription offers to find Cameroon-Tribune at home The pilot phase of a project is underway to issue 500,000 birth certificates to children who do not yet have the foundational identity document in Cameroon The project was launched recently in Batouri a town in the East Region noted for low birth registration Decentralisation and Local Development Minister Georges Elanga Obam launched the project as the country joined the rest of the continent to celebrate the Africa Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Day earlier this month which kicked off with the symbolic issuance of 100 birth certificates to some children in the area is taking place on the instructions of the President of the Republic Statistics from Cameroon’s National Civil Status Registration Office (BUNEC) show the rate of birth certificate issuance for children five years of age and below stands at 65 percent. Analysts say the figures need to be improved given the high birth rate in the country, and UN Sustainable Development Goal 16.9 targets 100 percent birth registration Obam used the launching ceremony to emphasise the importance of establishing birth certificates for children He harped on the vitality of the document which is the basis for establishing all other legal documents and for having access to basic services such as education “We are here to launch a special campaign to issue birth certificates We received instructions from the President of the Republic to deliver 500,000 copies to those who do not have them We have handed over the first copies of birth certificates to some children,” said Obam after launching the campaign Officials say the special drive will target underserved communities where access to civil status services is difficult Other targeted regions host a number of minority groups as well as remote communities where parents find it difficult registering their children at birth or at least within the three-month time frame provided for by Cameroon’s civil registration laws No deadline has been given for this phase of the project The hint for a special campaign to issue 500,000 birth certificates to Cameroonian children who do not yet have the important document was first dropped by Obam while speaking in parliament in April last year He was responding to a question from a senator on efforts that were being made by government to modernize the country’s civil status registration system and expedite the issuance of birth certificates “We are working on the legislation to govern the civil status system we should have put in place the said legislation We are soon also going to launch a special operation authorised by the President of the Republic to establish 500,000 birth certificates to children and adults who do not have,” he said then The legislation is yet to be sent to parliament a Cameroonian human rights activist who has carried out civil registration campaigns in the past told Biometric Update that the move is a laudable one It will enable so many children to have a birth certificate which is a very important document,” says Nji such a campaign should not be seen as a benevolent gesture It is the responsibility of a government to ensure that its citizens have birth certificates It is a universally declared right of a child This is what brings out the identity of an individual I often say that a child without a birth certificate is an alien on the surface of the earth.” Nji also notes that the process for establishing a birth certificate in Cameroon is complicated and calls on authorities to consider improving the process “One of our campaigns over the years has been for the process of issuing birth certificates to be digitalized as is the case with the process of issuing our biometric passports This will facilitate the acquisition of this particular document because this has been a big problem for parents,” he states Advising parents to take advantage of the campaign and secure the vital documents for their children while government too must work to ensure that the process to issue this important document is improved upon.” Some councils in Cameroon recently had funding support from the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and the Family to issue free birth certificates to needy children A research paper has listed a number of factors that must be considered by governments for the proper conduct of… the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced it had received more than 10,000 public… Expressions of interest will be called for a software integrator for MOSIP (Modular Open-Source Identity Platform) The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) – an international organization defending the interest of Uyghur people in and out of China… Indonesia has suspended World (formerly “Worldcoin”) and World ID following public complaints The country’s Ministry of Communication and Digital has… The Airports Company of Zimbabwe (ACZ) is seeking international partners as it prepares to install civil aviation security systems —… This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Continue Reading Learn More Copyright © 2025 Biometrics Research Group Web Design by Studio1337 Eastern Cameroon — Authorities in Cameroon say they are attempting to remove thousands of children working in gold mines along the country's eastern border Some of the children were displaced from the Central African Republic because of violence there and dropped out of school to mine gold for survival The 2021-2022 school year in Cameroon started Monday and Cameroon's Ministry of Basic Education says thousands of children have not returned to class in areas along the border with the Central African Republic You have selected an article from the AllAfrica archive, which requires a subscription. You can subscribe by visiting our subscription page. Or for more information about becoming a subscriber, you can read our subscription and contribution overview You can also freely access - without a subscription - hundreds of today's top Africa stories and thousands of recent news articles from our home page » AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals representing a diversity of positions on every topic We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you There was a problem processing your submission May 23 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency on Friday issued a fresh appeal for funds to help the growing number of refugees arriving in eastern Cameroon from the Central African Republic many of them malnourished and ill after walking and hiding in the bush for weeks UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told journalists in Geneva that the rate of deaths among refugee children has been particularly high in recent weeks the youngest a baby and the eldest nine years old died between April 14 and May 18 – most of them at therapeutic feeding centres where they had arrived already gravely ill hypothermia and severe anaemia were the main causes of death," he said Refugees from the Central African Republic have been arriving in Cameroon since December 5 through some 30 border points on a long border At present there are 85,000 refugees in some 300 villages making it extremely challenging for humanitarian agencies to meet their needs severe malnutrition rates among newly arriving refugee children are running at close to 40 per cent "We are relocating refugees away from the border to six sites we have set up More than 25,000 refugees have so far been moved This has become additionally pressing amid reports of infiltration of Anti-Balaka fighters into Cameroon," he said gunfire from Central African Republic was heard near a spontaneous refugee site in Gbiti more than 2,000 refugees are crossing into Cameroon weekly down from the peak of more than 10,000 in the last week of March Arrivals decreased in early April after Anti-Balaka militiamen blocked the main roads leading to Cameroon Newly arriving refugees tell UNHCR staff that many of their family members remain trapped in the bush across the border Edwards said UNHCR had established three new bases in eastern Cameroon to better help refugees arriving across the border but the agency was unable to reach all 30 entry points we have had 35 staff in three teams in the area Each team includes specialists in protection site planning and shelter," the spokesman said "While the humanitarian efforts are saving lives we are accelerating the deployment of more NGOs for the critical sectors of health and nutrition NGO capacity is worryingly thin in the refugee hosting areas Several agencies have reported difficulties in covering the vast array of needs," he noted UNHCR is working with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) the World Food Programme and five medical aid agencies to reduce malnutrition rates and deaths This includes the provision of therapeutic and supplementary feeding for the malnourished "Further funding is needed to expand services and better address the situation," Edwards said adding: "UNHCR renews its call for donors to urgently step up funding to humanitarian operations in Cameroon." Of the US$22.6 million UNHCR is seeking to help this population so far just US$4.2 million has been received the Regional Refugee Response Plan for Central African Republic is only 12 per cent funded This plan involves UNHCR and 14 partners in the four countries affected by Central African Republic refugee crisis – Cameroon BATOURI, Cameroon – Amina was married when she was just a child Amina’s body was not mature enough to bear a child an excruciating condition that could have killed her Fortunately, both she and her baby survived the childbirth, but the ordeal left Amina with a devastating injury known as an obstetric fistula a hole in the birth canal that leaves women incontinent and vulnerable to a raft of medical problems This condition afflicts the world’s most vulnerable women and girls and it makes their lives immeasurably harder: Many are abandoned by their families and ostracized by their communities More than 20,000 women are estimated to be living with obstetric fistula in Cameroon it has been essentially eliminated in industrialized countries through the availability of emergency obstetric care A 10-day campaign held in early July – a collaboration between UNFPA the Orange Foundation – reached out to survivors with free repair surgeries and information to help community members make sure fistula doesn’t happen in the first place was one of 33 women to receive free fistula repair surgeries during the campaign which brought four Cameroonian specialists to Batouri The doctors conducted three to four operations per day followed by post-operation observation lasting 14-21 days It was a rare opportunity for women in the East Region who otherwise would have to travel up to 700 kilometres through rough terrain to reach the N’gaoundéré fistula repair centre which was established by UNFPA and the MTN Foundation in 2013 “It would be illusory to think that the current rate of repairs can reduce the pool of women with fistula who are waiting for surgery,” said Barbara Sow UNFPA and its partners are working to increase the number of health centres able to deliver care to fistula survivors This is why the doctors participating in the 10-day campaign also trained health workers at the Catholic Hospital of Batouri Now that they have a qualified team in the region women will no longer need to travel to N’gaoundéré for care But fistula survivors also have needs beyond surgery Because of their exclusion by the community most women have been forced to abandon their jobs and livelihoods people wouldn't buy the food I was selling because of the bad odour of urine and the leaking," recalled one woman who received the repair surgery UNFPA and Orange will provide 60 fistula survivors with seed funding for small businesses and other income-generating activities And UNFPA is working to spread the word in communities that fistula can be prevented from happening in the first place by ensuring women give birth under the care of a skilled birth attendant – such as a midwife nurse or doctor – who can respond should complications arise It is especially important to get these messages to men “since they hold decision-making power over their wives,” said Dr UNFPA-trained advocates are speaking about the issue in so-called husband’s clubs groups of men who meet regularly to discuss family matters And the message seems to be having an effect The second edition of the national cocoa festival “Festicacao 2013” will begin on November 28 The cocoa show will be an opportunity for stakeholders to showcase strides recorded in cocoa research production and local processing of the cash crop Announcing the event in a press briefing in Yaounde recently said the second edition will hold on the theme Activities will simultaneously take place in Yaounde A three-day cocoa trade fair will hold at the Yaounde 20th May Boulevard and will see the participation of neighbouring cocoa producing countries like Gabon The first edition held on 7-8 November 2012 and saw the participation of over 20,000 visitors 29-10-2013 - Fertilizer Cocoa-Coffee Programme Draws Balance Sheet Bus Saviem: it is the kind of vehicle that you encounter on the Bertoua-Batouri road Drivers will tell you that this bus can easily adapt to the almost unusable state of the road The road Bertoua - Batouri – Kenzou (Cameroon) – Republic of Central Africa border the regional capital of the East and Kenzou a border town within the Republic of Central Africa The project consists of three lots: Bertoua-Akokan (46.3 km) Akokan-Batouri (49.1 km) and Batouri - Kenzou RCA-border (120 km).It will open up Kadey Lom and Djerem divisions in the East region thereby linking the region to the rest of the country and facilitating the movement of goods and persons This region has a high agricultural potential This road would also increase trade with Equatorial Guinea The project cost is estimated at 70 billion CFA francs (€ 110 million) Technical studies of the first to lots are available at the Ministry of Public Works The estimated duration for completion is 72 month according to the studies available Central Africa Stock Exchange Sees 98% Drop in Trading Value in Q1 2025 Mboa Paris Trains 30 Young Cameroonians to Boost Tech and Entrepreneurship Cameroon Audit Targets Former Officials for Mismanagement in Agricultural Project Camwater Seeks Global Bids to Launch Bottled Water Lines in Five Cities Bafoussam Workshop Highlights Benefits of Cameroon-EU Trade Agreement Cameroon Could Reach 350,100 Tons of Cotton in 2025 (Beac) Paul Biya Appoints Johnny Razack as Chair of Cameroon’s National Investment Company Cameroon Refuses Work Visa Renewal for Casino and Super U Boss Over Toxic Workplace Claims (Business in Cameroon) - Following a press release battle between Cameroon’s Industry Minister Emmanuel Bondé (photo) and heads of the Indo-Cameroonian company which was leading a design project for the Batouri sugar complex in East Cameroon the break-up seems final between the two parties The end of the partnership came in the form of a call for expressions of interest released on November 20 2014 by the Minister of Industry for the “selection of a private investor to create and run the agro-industrial sugar complex in the Bertoua-Batouri mid-zone in the East region” of Cameroon According to the government call for tenders the Batouri sugar project consists of developing 32,000 hectares for sugar cane production This commodity will be processed thanks to a factory to be built on site in order to correct the deficit in domestic production which varies between 60,000 and 90,000 tonnes and take advantage of the opportunities available on the sub-regional market The call for expressions of interest just launched by the Cameroonian government was announced by the Industry Minister in a release dated June 26 2014 in which Emmanuel Bondé revealed the termination of the agreement protocol established on April 13 for the implementation of a sugar complex in Batouri which is located in the East region of Cameroon Emmanuel Bondé announced that the government’s decision follows “dysfunction (raised by the international auditing firm Ernst & Young) in the application of the said agreement protocol as well as in the carrying out of the project.” The government official had also specified that the site designated for the project was “immediately” reclaimed by the government with Justin Sugar Mills being barred from accessing it Justin Sugar Mills brushed aside the Industry Minister’s release by way of its Director of Finance and Investments “Justin Sugar Mills Cameroon SA was never informed about any such decision by the State of Cameroon to stop such a major developmental instrument in the East region and the hopes of the young people of a whole nation Justin Sugar Mills finds that opinions expressed in the media other than those of the company or the State discourage or sabotage the community development and anti-poverty project A personal interest lobby has been trying for years to do this to the extent that Mr Geut assured that throughout a meeting held on the same day when the Industry Minister announced the termination of the agreement with Justin Sugar Mills “the Prime Minister expressed the need for competition in Cameroon’s sugar industry and affirmed the government’s total support for our project in accordance with the agreement protocol signed on April 13 which grants exclusive rights to Justin Sugar Mills Cameroon SA to build the sugar complex in the Bertoua-Batouri to guarantee 17,500 jobs to Cameroonians.” These remarks weakened the call for expressions of interest launched by the Cameroonian government on November 20 the Batouri sugar complex was to be operational from January 2014 but allegedly had a variety of difficulties which continue to compromise the project’s execution The project is to give birth to real competition from sugar production in Cameroon is the only company to produce sugar and its base ingredient it has contracts to supply sugar (in powdered form) to local agglomerates (companies that convert powdered sugar into squares) who complain generally about not being able to buy from this provider and often being obliged to import and this increases production costs Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo is planning to establish sugar cane plantations on 15,000 hectares out of a total of 155,000 hectares belonging to the company on sites in Tikondi and Bodongoué With its initial capacity to produce 60,000 tonnes per annum the Batouri sugar complex plans to also produce energy for its operation and rural electrification using sugar cane waste Massive MSC Turkiye to Dock in Kribi as New Container Terminal Opens Kribi Bitumen Plant Set to Start Construction in 2025 with Government Backing CEMAC Bond Market Hits CFA 8.45 Trillion in March 2025, Interest Rates Drop Cameroon’s Timber Output Projected to Rise in 2025 Despite Higher Export Taxes Every week the economy and investment news from Cameroon This is the amount of the investment planned by Agro Ressources Cameroon to build a cassava and maize processing plant in Batouri The project will help create over 1,000 jobs during the signing with the Cameroonian government of the agreement granting this project the benefits provided by the law on private investment incentives in Cameroon field preparations for the installation of maize and cassava farms should start within two months in order to launch the construction works of the processing unit by the end of 2016 the cassava and maize processing unit in development in Batouri will be one of the most important ever built in this sector in Cameroon after Maïscam or Société de Transformation de Manioc de Sangmélima (Sotramas) Batouri pourrait devenir le principal pôle agro-industriel de la région forestière de l’Est-Cameroun un premier investissement de 50 milliards de francs Cfa est en cours de réalisation dans cette localité aux fins de la mise en place d’un complexe sucrier Le projet porté par la société Justin Sugar Mills qui a récemment été remis en route au bout de plusieurs mois de tiraillements avec l’ancien ministre camerounais de l’Industrie induira la création de plus de 10 000 emplois Batouri could become the main agro-industrial hub of the forestry region of East Cameroon (Business in Cameroon) - The Cameroonian government through a correspondence from the Minister of Industry notified the CEO of the Justin Sugar Mills company "the disengagement of the State from investments in the sugar sector" including the one initiated by Justin Sugar Mills in Batouri who acted following instructions from the Prime Minister in a letter dated 10 December 2015 acknowledging this sugar project as "being an initiative essentially from the private sector"; thus put an end to the battle started in June 2014 by his predecessor in order to push away Justin Sugar Mills from this food industry project which should create approximately 10,000 jobs in landlocked East Cameroon on the grounds of "dysfunctions" noted in the implementation of the memorandum of understanding signed on 13 April 2012 which links the State of Cameroon and Justin Sugar Mills to the Batouri sugar industry project; had announced the termination of said memorandum A complaint for misappropriation of public funds against Mr Dong Thry Dong was even filed at the Special Criminal Court (the withdrawal of this complaint was initiated by the new minister of Industry on instruction from the PM) a call for investors launched by ex-Minister Bondé led to the selection of the Moroccan company Cosumar to take over this project against the resistance of the management of Justin Sugar Mills who kept denouncing a conspiracy by Minister Bondé against their project (FCfa 13 billion have been claimed from the State as compensation for the prejudice caused to Justin Sugar Mills) Cosumar will hesitate launching into the project Legislation relating to incentives for private investment the Cameroonian government has fully handed the project back to Justin Sugar Mills In the correspondence notifying the project investor of the withdrawal of the State and the upcoming withdrawal of the complaint against them from the Special Criminal Court the new minister of Industry asked the CEO of Justin Sugar Mills "to request the Investments Promotion Agency (in French API) in order to profit from facilities and the support of the State within the limits of the legal and regulatory framework in force" if Justin Sugar Mills follows this suggestion from the government the Batouri sugar industry project could soon profit from exemptions of 5 to 10 years during the installation and production stages as provided by the legislation relating to incentives for private investments in the Republic of Cameroon the Batouri industrial sugar complex ought to have started operations from January 2014 if not for the many difficulties faced by the project which should lead to the creation of the first true challenger to the French group Vilgrain on the sugar market in Cameroon (its local subsidiary is the only company producing sugar from principally local sugar cane) for the creation of sugar cane plantations on 15,000 hectares out of a total area of 155,000 hectares granted to Justin Sugar Mills in Tikondi and Bodongué With a processing plant of an initial production capacity of 60,000 tons per year the Batouri sugar complex would generate 5,000 direct jobs and 2,500 indirect jobs The project has succeeded in curbing preterm and low birth weight deaths in the East Region by about 50 per cent in two years but insufficient equipment is hampering further success “Improving access and quality of new-born care in 5 health districts of the East Region from 2018-2020” is still underway Funded by the Korea National UNICEF Committee and implemented by the East Regional Delegation of Public Health and the Cameroon Kangaroo Foundation the project also received technical and financial assistance from UNICEF Cameroon KMC project covered about 5,000 children in Abong-Mbang Batouri and Garoua Boulai Health Districts Batouri and Garoua Boulai District Hospitals; Catholic Integrated Health Centre Bertoua Regional Hospital and the Protestant Hospital Though evaluation is still going on to determine the full impact of the project “If preterm and low birth weight children before the project were dying at the rate of say This is because a great majority of parents continue to follow KMC instructions after leaving hospital,” Ottop explains In some of the 7 health facilities involved in the project there have been no preterm and low birth weight deaths in the past two years some women do not honour KMC appointments in hospital because of lack of means and sometimes public transport but most decisions concerning the child are taken by the father the decision to take the child to hospital or accept kangaroo mother care must be approved by the husband before the wife agrees,” Ottop explains Mbororo tribes people consider preterm babies a curse “Talking them out of such a belief is not easy but we keep sensitising by passing through their traditional and religious leaders Sensitisation is continuous,” she assures.