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Contributing to creating job opportunities for youth and economic recovery in the Far North region
Project
This project is carried out with the support of the European Union
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Project start date
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Project end date
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Project duration
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18 months
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AFD financing amount
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10000000 €
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Country and region
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Location
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Far North region
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Type of financing
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Partners
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European Union
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Beneficiaries
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Cameroon
This project is carried out with the support of the European Union
The content of this project information sheet falls under the sole responsibility of the AFD and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the European Union.
Since 2015, AFD has been working alongside Cameroon to allow populations to rebuild their region and return to employment. This project, which is also supported by the European Union via its Emergency Trust Fund, will offer 3,500 people a job in municipalities affected by the war against the Boko Haram terrorist sect.
Context
Far North region: A territory weakened by the fight against Boko Haram Since 2014, the Far North region has been seriously affected by the clashes with the Boko Haram terrorist group. The conflict was initially confined to Nigeria, but has spread to Cameroon where it has not spared populations: over 250,000 Nigerians and Cameroonians have been forced to flee their homes to take refuge in camps or villages unaffected by the war. These mass movements in a region already hit by climate change cause additional stress.
According to the Government’s latest survey, three in four inhabitants earn less than FCFA 1,000 a day (EUR 1.5) in the Far North region.
Description
Combining youth employment and economic recovery: the HIMO approach Since 2015, AFD has been working alongside Cameroon to allow populations to rebuild their region and return to employment. Thanks to funds from France’s Debt Reduction-Development Contract (C2D), the National Community Driven Development Programme (PNDP) has implemented high labor-intensive (HIMO) projects in eleven municipalities in the North Region.
This simple approach involves mobilizing marginalized populations – young people, women – for projects for basic amenities (well drilling, building rural roads) in their community. A third of their salary is directly paid into a savings account opened with a microfinance institution, which allows them to rebuild part of the capital they lost during the crisis. At the same time, support is also being provided by the NGO CARE International, which is working with the laborers in order to help them develop an integration project which will turn their savings into a more sustainable activity once the project is completed.
Impacts
Taking things further thanks to the European Union Emergency Trust Fund The results achieved to date are conclusive: 6 community projects have already been completed, with 1,000 young people recruited, and 400 individual projects have been supported.
Cameroon and AFD have obtained additional financing from the European Union Emergency Trust Fund to continue these dynamics. This agreement now allows the HIMO approach to be extended to 20 new community projects. These new projects will employ 3,500 young people and will, at their level, contribute to strengthening the recovery of the Far North region.