Pilot program focuses on southwestern Cameroon

This September, after many months of research, BreakingGround launched a pilot agricultural program in the villages of Folepi and Nkong. The pilot, which will transition farmers to more productive species of palm and cocoa trees, is a vital steptoward developing a larger program in the Wabane-Alou valley of southwest Cameroon.

The majority of families who live in the valley rely on income from palm oil and cocoa. While men are responsible for harvesting the palm nuts, men and women work together during the extraction of the red palm oil. Women, helped by adolescent girls, are exclusively responsible for cracking the palm kernels and extracting the palm kernel oil. Often, siblings like Mathias and Catherine (pictured above), work together to collect the palm nuts and cocoa pods from their land.

In October, despite heavy rains, Breaking Ground Program Director Paul Zangue worked with the villagers of Folepi and Nkong to set up a palm tree nursery in each village. We are also working with the National Agricultural Research Institute for Development, which has provided cocoa pods as part of a national sustainable agriculture program. By the end of the year, both villages will have a nursery of these improved cocoa pods.

In adition, we will train farmers in plantation management and begin a Women’s Entrepreneurial Program adapted to the needs of these agricultural communities. Classes will cover crop diversification,
family budgeting, and maternal and infant health. After the completion of the pilot, we hope to expand our work to other villages in the valley and provide loans for mechanized palm oil presses. These communities are motivated and excited to learn new methods, increase their income, and invest in their collective needs: potable water, passable roads, and better schools.

Microloans, Major Impact

Belembi wants to raise quail. Melanie wants to open a hair salon. Djenabou wants to sell cow’s milk. Thanks to Breaking Ground’s Women’s Entrepreneurial Program, these aspiring female business owners are getting the chance to realize their goals, earning crucial income for themselves and their families.

The WEP empowers Cameroonian women to overcome poverty by providing training, startup capital, and guidance as they start their own small businesses. The eight-week business course teaches feasibility studies, marketing, budgeting, cost analysis, and leadership. Breaking Ground has partnered with the Community Research and Development Center in Ngaoundéré, which provides classroom space. Several women from each course will be chosen to receive microloans. Projects will be selected based on need and creativity, with a focus on businesses that fill a niche within the community and participants from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. Launched in 2006, the program hastrained 150 women and financed 22 small enterprises to date.

To ensure the WEP’s sustainability, Breaking Ground is transitioning from startup grants to microloans. This change will allow women to build relationships with financial institutions, opening the door to additional loans to expand their businesses in the future. Loan repayments will be reinvested in future projects, benefiting not only the current participants, but also women enrolled in the program
for years to come.

The new courses will include visits to local microfinance institutions, familiarizing women with the loan process.  Women will work under close observation from Breaking Ground staff as they build their business, work with the financial institutions and repay the loans.

Breaking Ground hopes to expand the Women’s Entrepreneurial Program to other regions in Cameroon, adjusting the model based on the needs of the local population.

Keuleng School Nears Completion

For years, villagers in Keuleng, situated in the western province of Cameroon, struggled with the lack of a preschool. Young children from the village had to attend school in the much larger city of Dschang.

The village collectively decided that the construction of a tworoom preschool building, which would also serve as a community center, would greatly benefit not only the children but also the entire village and surrounding area. After more than 18 years of savings, villagers succeeded in constructing the building’s foundation and beams.

In November 2009, thanks to a generous grant from the Obakki Foundation, Breaking Ground worked side by side with the village leadership of Keuleng to re-launch construction. In the last year the walls have gone up, the floors have been cemented, and the roof has been put in place.

Now that the structure is complete, the government has agreed to hire teachers and start operating the school. All that remains is for us to raise funds for the finishing touches. Among other details, we still need to purchase tables and chairs and glass windows to protect students from the dust that rises from the nearby road. We are so close to making this 20-year dream a reality.

“Two years ago when my older son was in preschool, he got lost in town and the entire village had to go out to look for him,” says Paul Sonkeng. “As a parent, it’s terrifying to think that everyday your children are far from home in a large town they’re unfamiliar with and you can’t be nearby if there’s trouble. My dream is for my youngest to start school next year here in village, at the Keuleng Preschool.”

Letter from Lindsay, Chair of the Board of Directors

This past year, I had the opportunity to travel to Cameroon twice, both times with the generous financial assistance of the Obakki Foundation. My first trip (Nov. 28, 2009–Jan. 20, 2010) began with many long-overdue reunions with friends and “family,” who then quickly came to see that my visit was for work, not play: “Elle travaille trop!” they’d say.

In addition to overseeing the quickly advancing school construction in Keuleng and formalizing our new partnership with RIDEV, Paul Zangue and I began to forge the professional relationship that would lead to his hiring as our first fulltime employee in the spring. Alex Moore, who is now serving as Breaking Ground’s Interim Director, joined me for twoweeks to ring in the New Year with friends in Doumbouo and
to travel to Ngaoundéré for visits with our Women’s Entrepreneurial Program grant recipients. During my second trip (April 26–May 16, 2010), I worked with new board member Alden Blair and the WEP staff to establish partnerships with three local micro-finance banks.

The highlight of both trips, however, was my travel to the Southwest Region. Just moving around in the Lower Wabane Valley is work: trekking by foot between villages, in the scorching sun, is often more timely and practical that traveling by truck over the badly eroded road. But the effort was well worth it in the end. In the village of Folepi, I met siblings Mathias and Catherine as I watched traditional palm oil processing for the first time. I met dozens of women in Folepi, including the beautiful and exuberant Febe Mbai, who spoke enthusiastically about the ways in which our new program will help her with her agriculture.

Most satisfying of all was departing Cameroon in May knowing that the management of Breaking Ground’s programs lay in the able hands of Paul Zangue.

Meet Paul François Zangue

Breaking Ground is thrilled to welcome the talented and dynamic Paul François Zangue to the team as our full-time, Cameroon-based Program Director. We first met Paul in 2008, when Breaking Ground worked with his native village of Litieu on the Menouet River Bridge Project. Paul’s passion, energy, and skill very quickly became evident as he emerged as the project’s leader and successfully stepped into the role of Project Manager.

From maintaining relations with high level collaborators like the U.S. Embassy, the British High Commission, and the Peace Corps, to rolling up his sleeves and mixing cement, Paul was (and continues to be) willing and able to make our work a success.

Paul was equally impressed with Breaking Ground’s commitment. “What struck me the most was the approach,” he says. “In addition to sending financing, Breaking Ground encouraged the community members and helped them overcome the obstacles that arise during this type of project. This was all possible due to the engagement and motivation of the staff.”

Paul holds a master’s degree in agribusiness from the University of Dschang and worked for eight years as Branch Manager of the MC2 Microfinance Bank in Dschang. Paul lives in Dschang with his wife and their three children. Paul’s unique combination of integrity, dedication, and expertise make him the perfect ambassador for Breaking Ground’s work in Cameroon. “With Breaking Ground, I have the opportunity to work for grassroots development, allowing communities and individuals to realize their development dreams and improve their quality of life,” Paul says.