In 2018, a civil war broke out between separatists and the government in the English speaking North West and South West Regions of Cameroon. This is a part of Cameroon I have been working in since 2006. All my project work there has stopped - not that I live there all the time but others working on my behalf have had to stop entering forests to carry out surveys due to the risk they might be mistaken for combatants.
In addition to the risk of atrocities committed by both sides of the civil war, those who have not been able to relocate to the francophone regions struggle to earn a livelihood. I have been sending some funds over, but now my own income has now been drastically reduced due to the lockdown. Even if there had been no lockdown, I would have been limited in what I can send to support people so they can survive and would be getting them working on my projects so I can pay them. This all came to a head this weekend, when a friend’s house lost its roof in a storm. This is a friend who I have worked with, ran a guest house and greatly encouraged research and conservation of his area's cultural and natural heritage. I was in no doubt I could not pay to replace this roof myself (c. £350), and felt it would be insulting to send what little I had in an emergency fund I had set aside (less than £50). I have thus set up this fundraiser. I do this with trepidation. It is difficult to talk about who will benefit from this fund, to name names, as this is a dangerous situation for numerous reasons. Announcing who gets the funds risks those being targeted by militia on either side, as well as raising suspicions that funds might be going to militia. Care is going to be needed to make sure funds are not going to fund militarism in any form. To be clear here, this fund is strictly neutral with regard to the civil war. At present this is supporting a handful of people I know. I am not sure how things are going to work out, if there will be scope to expand on this to help others in a more objective, evidence-based manner. If you are reading this and can make constructive suggestions, please get in touch. So the first stage is to get this roof repaired, followed by sending funds for food, etc to other contacts (about five other households). If lots (117?) of us chip in £3 to £5, this could help out for the time being. Following up from this, donations are welcomed so a passive flow of income can be sent over. Full accounts will be audited and published on a quarterly basis until further notice. You can donate through Paypal HERE. Many thanks, Tom
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