Cameroon faces a civil war between the Anglophone separatists and the Cameroonian government. By empowering internally displaced deaf/hearing impaired persons in Cameroon, particularly in the northwest region, Blaise wants to restore hope and confidence for the future. Since 2020 he has trained 49 young people in fashion design. Most trainees were IDP’s who have since returned to their villages or cities of origin. To learn more about the situation of internally displaces persons and Blaise’s experienced read the blogpost at:
By Blaise Ngwana
Welcome to Bamenda: A City Under Siege
Welcome to Bamenda, the capital city of the Northwest region of Cameroon. In the year 2016, a strike broke out that was organized by lawyers, which later involved teachers too and ended up being called the Anglophone crisis. This crisis involves fighting between the Cameroon military force and the local separatist fighters called Amba boys. As a result of this fighting, there is a complete disturbance of economic activities, agriculture, education, as well as basic day-to-day activities. This has resulted in people forcefully leaving their homes to seek refuge in neighboring towns and city centers where the security is tight.
The Struggles of Daily Life
Before moving to the city, these young people, women, and children primarily relied on farming to feed themselves. They sold extra crops at local markets for money. This income helped them buy items they couldn’t produce locally, like kerosene for lamps at night, which was crucial for students to study after dark. It also covered school fees and bought salt and medicine when traditional remedies didn’t work. It is equally very common among rural women in the northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon to belong to small meeting groups. In these groups, they unanimously join forces to cultivate a member’s farm and the process goes round for everybody. It’s locally called “farm njangi.”
Additionally, energetic young people often work on the farms of wealthy elders in their communities for pay. There is also demand for unskilled labor on construction sites, where these youths make up a large part of the workforce. Due to their large numbers, they typically receive low wages. However, those who have learned a trade from their parents through inheritance tend to earn more. This income is usually used to cover their essential expenses, and some can use it to pay for school or apprenticeship fees.
Surviving Under Curfew
When the crisis started, daily life became incredibly challenging for everyone. Young people felt trapped due to restrictions imposed by both Amba boys and the Cameroon military. To maintain peace, the government frequently imposes curfews, which mean people must stay indoors from 6:00 PM to 6:00 AM, essentially living like prisoners. Sometimes, these curfew hours are extended, affecting schools and all kinds of businesses. The situation worsens when curfews are enforced by separatist fighters.
Ghost Town Days: A New Normal
For years now, Mondays and Cameroon’s national days have become ghost town days, where all activity halts. If an Amba leader is killed, a month-long ghost town is declared. Even visits by foreign organizations for peace missions trigger ghost town days. Recently, the national day celebrations on May 20th, 2024, led to a five-day ghost town in the Northwest and Southwest regions. During ghost town periods, all outdoor activities come to a complete stop.
Dreams Deferred: Youth in Crisis
Imagine being a young man full of energy and dreams in such a region; you feel trapped by the circumstances. Women can’t tend to their crops, and children can’t go to school. In contrast, the elderly in rural areas, who usually stay home, are less affected by the disruptions. Faced with these challenges, our youth, women, and children are forced to move to nearby towns where there is more peace. However, they can’t bring their small herds and farmhouses with them. In towns, their opportunities for unskilled work are limited because machines have taken over many jobs. An Internally Displaced Person told me that when he left his village, he had to sneak away at night because there was heavy shooting, and he was too scared to take anything with him. Since he didn’t have a bike or car, he had to walk. Another person said, “I come na so,” meaning he arrived in town with nothing but the clothes on his body.
Urban Challenges: Adapting to City Life
With this unpreparedness, reality knocks. And given the fact that they have very little knowledge of modern skills, reality in the city area hits them even harder. In the village, knowing how to farm and tap palm wine is prime and the most essential for survival. But in the city, no farmland is available. And in the urban area, nothing is free. In fact, everything has a price tag, even drinkable water. Unlike the village where you can comfortably drink from a local stream or spring, the consequence of drinking stream water in Bamenda is one month of treating severe typhoid in the hospital. Where would they even find money to pay for hospital bills? Many of the new migrants end up going back to the village to treat these diseases with herbs. Talking about sickness, some young female IDPs who see prostitution as a means to make ends meet tend to contract Sexually Transmitted Infections from city boys. They have very limited knowledge about protectives.
The Hidden Costs of Displacement
Looking at the housing situation for internally displaced persons, young men often share cramped living spaces because they can’t afford larger accommodations. It’s common to find multiple men sharing one room, and even having one meal a day is considered a luxury. In Cameroon, very few homes have guest rooms, so when relatives arrive unexpectedly with large families, it adds to the congestion, forcing children to sleep on the floor or share rooms with their parents. This overcrowding severely impacts everyone’s mental well-being.
Living with a Unique Challenge
In crisis-affected parts of Cameroon, life is challenging for everyone, especially for someone like me who is hard of hearing. My unique challenges include the constant risk of being hit by stray bullets because I can’t always hear approaching danger and most often, I depend on the people around me for signals. Once, I climbed a plum tree to pick fruit while there was gunfire nearby, unaware of the danger. Many deaf individuals in the region have been injured or killed due to their inability to hear warnings.
A Vision for Change: Empowering the Deaf
To address these risks, I aim to create a safe haven where deaf people can access a facility that not only alerts them to danger and provides escape routes but also offers training in fashion design. Fashion design is a visual skill that doesn’t rely on hearing, making it ideal for deaf individuals who can focus on details without distractions. I believe deaf people have great potential in this artistic field and deserve opportunities to excel.
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