Female returnees in Donga Mantung V section take up fish smoking for commercial purposes.
They are being encouraged to do this by the WCPDM Section President, Martha Njinkwen. This she says will help them get settled, sustain their families and make them economically viable. The mother of the section as she is affectionately called got concerned about their state as they returned. As she said “Most of them lost everything with the crisis. These women are barely starting life from scratch”. She has been having meetings with the women to brainstorm on different ways through which they can brave poverty and lack together. Njinken plans to rebuild the confidence of her peer women by encouraging them not to minimize any talents but to improve on every knowledge they got and most of all see the economic potentials imbedded in. She has been calling on the women to take advantage of their natural environment hence the transformation of fresh to smoked fish. Mwa has water and fishing is one of the activities which locals carry out. Over the years the people have not made use of the economic potential of the Mwa fish which they say is very tasty.
The WCPDM’s effort is thus an eyeopener. So far; the response is very good as the activity is said to be improving life for many families.
Nancy Mungusi, a mother of four who fled the area with her children has returned and following the advice of her women leader has taken up this activity. She smokes and sell fish to the Cameroonian and Nigerian markets. According to Nancy, “I send my four kids to school, and support my entire family from smoking and selling fish”, she affirmed.
The training was launched in 2020, but it was very timid according to the WCPDM President. The main challenges at the time the project was launched were the crisis in the North west and South west and the Covid – 19. These greatly hampered the effective takeoff of the exercise in that it was hard to convince women to sit and learn. With the return of peace lots of women are trying the activity and it is yielding the desired results. “We have about three of the trainees who sell both in the Cameroonian and Nigerian markets. The rest of them sell in our local markets and consume the fish as well”, Martha noted.
Mwa is situated in the Cameroon-Nigeria boarder and the fish from Mwa has a huge demand from both sides.
The WCPDM President plans to engage the women in several other sectors by linking them up to persons who can help them learn and start such petit trades. “This will make the women inour section autonomous, and also enable them to militate confidently; taking care of their families and paying their party dues”, she insisted.
The National President of the CPDM has maintained his desire to see an improved and productive life for Cameroonian, especially militants of the CPDM.
Irene AWENEG
