COMINSUD TRAINS 6 COMMUNITY MOBILIZERS TO CARRYOUT LIFESAVING SERVICE DELIVERY IN COMMUNITIES.

Within the framework of the project o“Strengthening Access to WASH Facilities and Services in Child Friendly Spaces and surrounding Communities”, COMINSUD with the support of UNICEF has trained and deployed 6 Community Mobilizers in the North West and West Region.

Training in session with facilitator Munda Terence.

The project to run for four months is expected to sensitize 4,260 persons (IDPs and host community) on good hygiene and sanitation practices, including lifesaving messages on COVID-19 and cholera prevention.  To this effect, Community Mobilizers will ensure that 1,200 children at Child Friendly Spaces and surrounding Communities have access to adequate sanitation facilities thanks to the construction of 6 latrines each with 4 cabinets, distribution of menstrual hygiene kits to 60 adolescent girls and 600 WASH kits to households, 3000 persons(IDPs and host community) are sensitized on good hygiene and sanitation practices including lifesaving messages on COVID-19 by December 2022. The Community Mobilizers will as well identify child protection needs and ensure proper intervention and referrals to appropriate service points. 

Community Mobilizers and Facilitator Munda Terence pose for a group picture after session.

This training took place at the Adolescent and Youth Friendly Space in COMINSUD head office on Tuesday 5th April 2022, under the Coordination of Munda Terence the Supervisory of UNICEF projects at COMINSUD.

MINPROFF IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMINSUD, REACH OUT TO 300 SCHOOL GIRLS WITH KNOWLEDGE ON GENDER BASED VIOLENCE, MENSTRUAL HYGIENE IN COMMEMORATION OF THE 2022 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY.

To mark this year’s international Women’s Day, the Regional Delegation of Women Empowerment and the Family (MINPROFF) North West Region, in partnership with COMINSUD kicked off a week long of activities to celebrate the global event, with a visit to Progressive Comprehensive college Bamenda. The visit to the school, had as focus to educate young girls from the ages 13-21 on Gender Based Violence; defining key terms like gender, sex, violence, perpetrators, and survivors. According to a UN Women report, school-related gender based violence is a major obstacle to universal schooling and the right to education for girls. Reasons why, the sensitization exercise also saw the breakdown of the forms of GBV, it’s causes and effects on individuals and the society.

Women’s Day is observed every March 8, to celebrate the progress made in achieving Gender Equality, and Women’s Empowerment but also to raise awareness on the great amount of inequalities and violence women still face.

Furthermore, the day seeks to recognize the remarkable efforts of women in the historical, economic, political, social, and cultural advancement of their countries and communities. Cameroon celebrates under the theme “Equality between women and men for a sustainable tomorrow”.

The school girls were also drilled on sexual reproductive health, menstrual health and hygiene as an important aspect of a woman’s life. They were reminded of the importance of menstruation and ways of better management, for good menstrual health can protect the dignity, build the confidence and strengthen sexual and reproductive health particularly among adolescents.

Cultural taboos and myths surrounding menstruation was demystified and boys encouraged to support girls by shunning negative practices that disfavor them during their periods.
The distribution of sanitary products crowned the end of the school exercise and the students showed appreciation for the knowledge gained.

COMINSUD remains committed to the empowerment of women, girls and the transformation of communities.

COMINSUD mobilise over 20 men and women who benefit from WFP ‘s cash assistance at its head office to impact them with knowledge on Gender-based violence.

We are not only engaged in the financial well-being of the community but we see the need to create awareness and change the mentality of men and women towards Gender-based violence.

COMINSUD mobilise over 20 men and women who benefit from WFP ‘s cash assistance at its head office to impact them with knowledge on Gender-based violence. This activity is Organised to close 16 days of activism that has been going on across the globe.

To stop GBV, men’s voices will have to be heard. Zama Eric in his intervention calls on men to STOP violence on Women. Mr Fon Nsoh on his part encouraged participants to go into their communities and make a change with the knowledge they have received for a better community

COMINSUD Joins the International Community to Celebrate Human Rights Day 2021

The world celebrates Human Rights Day to raise awareness about the inalienable rights that everyone is entitled to as a human being. This day is also a celebration of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations in 1948. Various programmes are organised across the world to encourage governments, social organisations to further the cause of equality and protection of the rights of all individuals – irrespective of race, colour, religion or sex.
Date

Human Rights Day is celebrated across the world on December 10 to mark the adoption of the UDHR, which is seen as a milestone document. the theme of Human Rights Day this year will be “equality”. It has taken the theme from Article 1 of the UDHR, which says: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
Human rights are protected by international and national laws and treaties globally. The mission to protect human rights around the world has been tasked to a 47-member grouping known as the Human Rights Council. These UN member-states are empowered to prevent inequality, abuses and discrimination, protect the most vulnerable, and punish the perpetrators of human rights violations.

SUPPORT GIRLS GO BACK TO SCHOOL IN THE NORTH WEST REGION – CAMEROON

The North West and South West Regions of Cameroon have since 2016 face an armed conflict. The crisis has been characterized by school shut downs, wanton killings with many children caught between rape and forced marriages amongst other vices. This has necessitated humanitarian actions to protect girls who have faced significant forms of violence and are still highly at risk to see more violation of their rights if increased measures are not taken.

Statistics from UNICEF (Nov. 2019) indicate that more than 855,000 children remain out of school in the North West and South West Regions, ReliefWeb (April. 2020) reported over 14 children killed. COMINSUD field reports from April to September 2020 indicate that 38 girls have been victims of rape, 69 others suffered sexual assault, 74 succumbed to physical assault, 61girls have been forced into early marriages, 90 girls have been denied resources and services while 98 girls have gone through psychological/Emotional violence. The numbers are from 10 of 34 council areas in the North West Region.

COMINSUD on October 11th 2020 joins in the commemoration of the International Day of the Girl Child under the theme: “My Voice, our Equal Future,” with activities in 15 localities across Mezam, Menchum and Momo Divisions of the North West Region. We reached out to over 1,000 girls aged 9 – 17. With a series of activities and drills, we shared ideas that will enable them in voicing their rights to life, health, education and protection as well as envisioning a better future.  

Some girls expressed joy with the new window of opportunity they have to go back to school after staying home for over 4 years. They regret some of their peers who are deprived from accessing education due insecurity, lack of means, unplanned pregnancies, forced marriages and even deaths.

COMINSUD working extensively in the domains of inclusion, fight against Gender Based Violence and child protection is very concerned with the rights of the girl child to return to safe schools.  The International Day of the Girl Child as a platform  for us to amplify the voices of voiceless girls across the North West Region in their quest for the right to education and an equal future.   

These activities were realized thanks to the partnerships with UNFPA, UNICEF, Bread for the World – Germany and the Cities of Gorinchem/Dordrecht – Netherlands.

Contact: info@cominsud.org or cominsud_ngo@yahoo.com   (+237) 677666486 

#Supportcominsudtosupportgirlsgobacktoschool #internationaldayofthegirlchild #InternationalGirlChildDay  #inclusion #fightagainstGBV #childprotection #UNFPA #UNICEF #breadfortheworldgermany  #cityofgorinchem #dordrechtbamaendafoundation  #cominsud

WFP shortlists COMINSUD to distribute food assistance in North West Cameroon

The World Food Programme (WFP) has identified COMINSUD as one of the organizations it could work with in the provision of emergency food assistances to the crisis hit North West Region of Cameroon. This was the essence of a visit by Hans Vlkoler, Emergency Coordinator WFP, Cameroon office, to the COMINSUD Bamenda headquarters on Friday April 12, 2019.

Hans Vlkoler said for the short term WFP activities in the Region would focus on setting up emergency response systems with potential partners. This done, targeted food assistance shall be made available to include school feeding, supplementary food and livelihood assistance. He disclosed that a central warehouse shall be set up in the North West Regional capital of Bamenda from where the items shall be dispatched.


For his part, COMINSUD’s coordinator Fon Nsoh assured that banking on its twenty two years of local community activities, the organization was ready for the challenge. COMINSUD he said was already collaborating with other UN structures such as the UNFPA in providing Mama and Dignity kids to Internally Displaced Persons of the Anglophone crisis. COMINSUD also worked with SNV to promote the Right to Food movement in Cameroon.


A partnership agreement between WFP and COMINSUD is expected to be signed in the days ahead detail the practical modalities of this partnership.


A few days earlier a delegation from Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontiers) working in the North West Region of Cameroon paid a courtesy visit COMINSUD. The team of three made up of Monica Fernadez, Deep W. B and Tataw Stephen came to seek pathways for collaboration with COMINSUD in helping people affected by the crisis in the Anglophone Regions of Cameroon in general and the North West Region in particular.