Following the growth of our activities we are happy to announce our presence in the Centre Region of Cameroon. Sekakoh has been selected for the “Projets Innovants de la Société Civile et Coalition d’Acteurs”(PISCCA 2020). PISCCA, is a technical and financial tool of French diplomacy aimed at supporting civil society organizations. The program is managed by the Service de Coopération et d’Action Culturelle, SCAC, of French Embassies.

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Sekakoh’s PISCCA project has as overall goal to implicate locals in the sustainable use of natural resources around the Mpem and Djim National Park (MDNP) . (See map below).

Since the creation in 2004 of the MDNP, the riverine population of this protected area, characterized by a landscape of mosaic savanna-forest, have hardly received any compensation nor benefited from the existence of the park. They have never really been implicated in the conservation of this Park.

It is in this regard that Sekakoh, in collaboration with the Technical Assistant to the Mpem & Djim National Park successfully applied for the PISCCA 2020 grant.

In view of France’s commitments to the, Paris Climate Agreement, environmental protection is a priority for French diplomacy. To this regard, they will be working with Sekakoh that has proven over time her commitment in the protection of wildlife and the environment.

Sekakoh’s project has to raise awareness among these populations through video projected sensitization campaigns across six villages bordering the Mpem & Djim National Park. They include Sérere, Linté, Kamkata, Djim-Massambe, Jérusalem, Yangba, Mindou-Mindja. The screening of a documentary film made on the park and its periphery, and a booklet presenting the values of the park will be distributed and used as a communication tool.

Sekakoh shall also train 02 Common initiative groups (CIGS) in beekeeping as an alternative income-generating activity. Another part of the project will be to construct a manual borehole in Labo village of Ngoro subdivision, one of the six villages that have no access to portable water.

To ensure a successful project implementation, the French Embassy,PISCCA team, organized a 3-days workshop in Yaoundé, bringing together all beneficiaries of PISCCA 2020 to improve visibility of beneficiaries, and fine-tune project delivery protocols. See picture below:

From left to right is Ariane Visier, Research and Environment Officer – Cooperation and Cultural Action Service at the French Embassy, Bakam Elionore Sekakoh’s Administrator and Accountant, Flanigan Elena, Civil Society and Human Rights Officer, Cooperation and cultural Action Service at the French Embassy and Nyugha Denis, the Coordinator of Sekakoh.

The Yaounde event was crowned by a launching ceremony of PISCCA 2020 at the French residence in Yaounde.

Picture: The coordinator of Sekakoh, Nyugha Denis gives a brief presentation of the Sekakoh_PISCCA 2020 project in the presence of H.E Christophe Guilhou, French Ambassador to Cameroon and other dignitaries.