Prime Minister Chief Dr Joseph Dion Ngute arrived in Bamenda on the evening of Thursday 3 July 2025 to a warm reception, marking his third official visit to the North West Region since his appointment and the outbreak of the armed conflict in 2016. His mission this time: to chair the 7th session of the Steering Committee of the Presidential Plan for the Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West (PPRD-NW/SW), and to evaluate the progress made since the last major government push to restore development and normalcy in the region.
Among the many who lined the streets to welcome the Prime Minister was a delegation of the South West/North West Women’s Task Force (SNWOT), led by the President Andiensa Clotilda Waah and Regional Coordinator Dr Eileen Tabuwe Akwo. Their presence, both symbolic and strategic, sent a clear message: women’s voices must not only be heard but integrated in Cameroon’s long and winding road to peace.
“We are here to factor our voices into this evaluation. We are the women who have been shouting at the top of our voices because of the negative impact of the crisis on women and girls.” Andiensa Clotilda Waah told Hilltopvoices.
Waah acknowledged that progress had been made since their last meeting with the Prime Minister.
“I think the Prime Minister has done a lot to live up to the promises that they made. He came down at Ayaba and said the President had heard our cry for dialogue. That dialogue happened. But more still needs to be done. We are not going to leave this process.”
Her concerns, however, ran deeper than political symbolism. She challenged the government to disclose how much of the PPRD projects have actually involved women from planning to implementation.
“We want to find out how many women were part of the initiation of the projects. How much of women and children’s concerns have been factored in? she asked adding "Many of us have gained skills and experience from peacebuilding in other countries. It’s time we bring that home.”
Dr Eileen Tabuwe Akwo echoed those concerns, shifting the conversation to security or the lack thereof.
“If we look at the region right now, we still cannot say that we have security. Women and girls suffer the most when there is insecurity. We know what happens when they go to their farms. We know what happens when girls are kidnapped or coerced into sexual relationships under the cover of crisis.” she said
She applauded the PPRD’s visible infrastructural interventions but insisted that the emotional and physical security of the most vulnerable women and girls remained unaddressed.
“We think the PM has to speak directly to this issue because we are the ones feeling the pinch of it all.”
While the government reports dozens of completed and ongoing PPRD projects like schools, health centres, water points, and now the commissioning of the new Bamenda Proximity Stadium critics argue that the social fabric remains fragile. For many women, this third visit by the Prime Minister is a chance not just to evaluate statistics, but to account for the human experience behind the numbers.
“Peacebuilding is a continuous process. We continue to cry, because our children and our husbands are at loggerheads. We believe it is time they have a talk and women must be part of that talk.” Andiensa Clotilda Waah concluded
As the Prime Minister prepares to chair what could be a pivotal session of the PPRD Steering Committee, expectations remain high but so does scrutiny.
By Bakah Derick for Hilltopvoices Newsroom
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