From 12 to 18 February 2018, the founder of the association, Fred-Eric Essam, visited Cameroon at the invitation of Günter Nooke, special African envoy of Chancellor Angela Merkel and a delegation of scientists and German civil society. The theme of the trip was: “Religion and Tradition – Africa is Different”. The objective was to identify the interactions between tradition, religion, culture and endogenous development potential with a view to integrating them into development cooperation programmes.
In the Cameroonian capital, Jaunde, the German delegation led by Mr. Günter Nooke held various meetings and talks, including with the President of the Republic Paul Biya, the country’s religious leaders and the Minister of Economic Affairs (MINEPAT) of the Republic of Cameroon.
The first working session with traditional leaders took place on 14 February at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation headquarters in Jaunde. The agenda item was entitled “The role of traditional leaders in local development”. The Cameroonian association ESPERANZA-CADE gave a conference on traditional leadership in Cameroon. Traditional leaders from different regions of Cameroon were invited to the event. The event which followed in the evening and in a relaxed and cultivated atmosphere at the residence of the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, was the occasion of an exchange with the traditional chiefs of the Adamaoua, West, Littoral and Northwest regions under the musical accompaniment of the dance group of the Yaoundé Baméka community.
15.02. The delegation went west at the invitation of the Mayor of Bangangté, Mrs Celestine Ketcham Courtès. After a short conversation with the city prefect, the national anthems of Germany and Cameroon were sung. The Mayor of Bangangté, Mrs Ketcha Courtès, took the opportunity to present her team to the German delegation. Then followed the visit to the traditional Bagangté chief. The highlight of the trip to the western region of Cameroon was undoubtedly the visit to the Batoufam chief.
Under the leadership of His Majesty Innocent NAYANG TOUKAM, Head of Batoufam, more than 2,000 people as well as students and officials from the region’s administration came to welcome the guests. Representatives of German development cooperation in Cameroon, including the German Embassy in Jaunde, the GIZ, the KFW and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung were also present.
The following days and after the visit of the National Museum in Dschang, where the history of the origin of Cameroon until its independence was told in an impressive way, the delegation took the road to Penja and Buea.
Buea, the town at the foot of Mount Cameroon (4100m), seat of the German colonial administration until 1920, was the next stop of the German delegation that arrived on the spot in the evening of 16.02. Under the leadership of KFW and during discussions with the traditional authorities of the region, the delegation had the opportunity to examine the project of sustainable management of Mount Cameroon Buea Park and to be presented how the population can be integrated into the project in a péreine way. The theme of the meeting was “Traditional structures and the importance of German development cooperation in the green sector”. After a brief visit to the Governor of the South West Province, Mr. Bernard Okala Bilai and the Mayor of Buea, the delegation closed the visit with a dinner at the invitation of Mr. Jan Fröhlich, Director of the KFW Representation in Cameroon.
During a meeting the next day at the Seemannsmission Hotel in Douala, the German delegation took the opportunity to exchange with representatives of the REDHAC organisation, Mrs Alice Nkom and Mrs Maximilianen Ego Mbe.
It is by a cocktail dinner at the Hotel AKWA PALACE in the port city of Douala and at the invitation of Mr. Célestin Tawamba, President of the Inter-Enterprise Group of Cameroon GICAM, that the delegation ended its stay in Cameroon on February 18 at 22:00
The members of the delegation
Mr. Günter Nooke (BMZ)
Ms. Dr. Christiane Annemarie Kraus (BMZ, Pers. Referentin)
Mr. Prof. Dr. Matthias Theodor Vogt (Institut für kulturelle Infrastruktur Sachsen)
Ms. Prof. Dr. Brigitta Herrmann (Cologne Business School/CBS)
Ms. Dr. Christine Gühne (Brot für die Welt)
Mr. Fred-Eric Essam (ident.africa)
Ms. Aurélie Rieskamp (BMZ, Dolmetscherin)
