The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) through her Programme for Central and West Africa (IUCN-PACO) has embarked on bringing the activities of some Cameroonian environmental conservation NGOs into the limelight. These national NGOs include ERuDeF, AMMCO, CAMGEW and ACREST.
By Ndimuh Bertrand Shancho
The Coordinator of PPI IUCN-PACO, Thomas Bacha, says this project involves the production of five short documentaries of about five to seven minutes per NGO that will be posted on the website of IUCN and other NGOs.
The documentaries will also be exhibited at different conferences for international exposure.
Bacha was accompanied by French photographer and multimedia journalist, Alexis Huguet as he toured some ERuDeF projects in the Southwest and West Regions.
The IUCN-PACO boss said the project is also out to help the Cameroonian NGOs in their communication efforts, given that there is still a very big communication gap within many Cameroonian NGOs today.
“Communication still remains a really big problem to many environmental NGOs in Cameroon. Some of them have really good projects on the ground but nobody ever knows about them. ERuDeF has worked on this I know, but for the other ones it’s really difficult. So it is important for them to be known nationally and internationally as actors on environmental issues. This will be a very good way for NGOs to find new partners,” Bacha said.
This project, according to Bacha, will also involve working with communities around the Nja reserve to revamp cocoa production which dropped due to the fall in cocoa prices in the world market some 20 years ago.
He noted that the cocoa production project would be carried in such a manner as not to affect conservation efforts in any way.
After working with civil societies in Cameroon for four years now, Bacha said this project will also give him a much better understanding of what civil societies in Cameroon go through in terms of challenges and otherwise.
He also cited some problems, which to him are hindering the effectiveness of NGOs in Cameroon.
“Many NGOs in Cameroon do not have any motivation and thus lack that sense of specialization and focus. You cannot do everything and be effective in everything. Some are into environmental issues, education issues, medical issues; you cannot be everywhere at the same time. I understand this is usually induced by poverty,” Bacha said. He urged environmental NGOs in Cameroon to take time off, rethink about their vision and mission and decide what exactly they want to achieve and not try to do everything.
Bacha said though it may seem really difficult to specialize and get really focused in the short run, the reward in the long run is always remarkable.
