Cameroon

The Far North of Cameroon is grappling with a crisis that directly affects nearly 2.1 million people. In April 2019, an estimated 262,000 people had already fled the violence of the insurgent movement Boko Haram. Since 2014, the terrorist group has intensified its activities which include attacks, massacres, suicide bombings, kidnappings, looting and total destruction of villages.

Alongside this climate of violence, food insecurity in the Far North region has reached a critical level: around 117,000 people suffer from global acute malnutrition (GAM). The majority of displaced and vulnerable people who previously had access to livelihoods have lost the ability to resume their activities and cannot meet their basic needs.

The intervention proposed by Mission inclusion in 2019 is a continuation of two previous assistance projects in Cameroon, the Réponse d’urgence intégrée pour les populations vulnérables, déplacées et locales, affectées par la crise dans l’Extrême-Nord du Cameroun (2017) and the Projet d’assistance intégrée aux personnes déplacées et populations hôtes affectées par la violence dans la région de l’Extrême-Nord du Cameroun (2016), both funded by Global Affairs Canada.

The project has a particular focus on the inclusion, participation and empowerment of those most affected by the crisis—women, girls and other marginalized groups. This approach makes it possible to work on the prevention of gender-based violence.

Implemented in partnership with the CDD-Caritas of Maroua-Mokolo, this project offers an immediate response to:

► The need for safe drinking water

► Malnutrition in children under the age of 5 as well as pregnant and breastfeeding women

► The urgent need for livelihoods

► The need for basic health care, including sexual and reproductive health

The project also aims to equip populations to face future crises through the following means:

► Strengthening resilience and autonomy among farmers and producers

► Revitalizing economic activities by supporting small entrepreneurs

► Strengthening understanding within communities, particularly among women and girls, on protection services and their fundamental rights, especially in relation to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR)

► Increasing mobilization in communities to prevent and respond to protection risks, particularly those affecting women, girls and other vulnerable people, including gender-based violence (GBV)

To meet the needs of displaced populations and host communities hardest hit by the crisis, this Mission inclusion project relies on an evolving, sustainable and environmentally friendly humanitarian response.