Romana

This program, an initiative of the CEPS (Centre pour la Promotion Sociale), has been carried out for several years in Mehandan, a district on the outskirts of Yaoundé.

The program has several stages. The first consists in giving formation to a group of university girls in business management and planning; then their work is evaluated, and the best go to different villages to train women in the management of their economic activities.

In 2009, 35 girls received this formation, which they then passed on to more than a hundred women in five rural villages: Mehandan, Nkolnda, Nkolngok, Nsimalen and Lobé. Later, 83 village women had access to a microcredit program to begin a small business or upgrade what they were already doing, with a monthly follow-up of each one for a period that varied between six months and a year. This involved appraising how the training was assisting the overall development of each person in a number of different contexts: family, moral, social, financial, etc. The women appreciate the training they receive and the accompaniment they are offered.

In 2010 the same project was carried out. The 38 girls taking part gave classes to some 100 women. The villages involved were Mehandan III, Nkolnda II, Nkol-Mefou, Ekoko II and Benebalot, and the impact continued to be positive. Now we are beginning the follow-up stage. The university girls receive a certificate when they finish their project. They themselves see the importance of receiving formation in order to later be able to give formation to women of low income so that they can improve their standard of living.