The North West Regional Assembly has celebrated the endurance of learners in the crisis-hit region, awarding cash prizes to outstanding students for their performance during the 2024/2025 school year. The event, which took place in Bamenda on Wednesday 24 September 2025 at the close of the Assembly’s September session, was chaired by President Prof. Fru Angwafo III, who pledged the Assembly’s continued support for education, excellence, and inclusion.
Dozens of meritorious students drawn from all seven divisions of the region received prizes ranging from 30,000 to 60,000 FCFA and material support. The initiative, which has been sustained over the past five years, also extended support to vulnerable groups, including orphans and internally displaced children.
Prof. Fru Angwafo said the award scheme is a great priority to the Assembly .
“Not by might, not by body, but by a deep moral commitment, we stand with the deserving and reward excellence,” he declared.
He stressed that investing in education remains one of the Assembly’s most important contributions to human development in the North West.
“Rewarding excellence is not just recognition. This is an investment in the future of the region.” he said
North West Governor Adolphe Lele Lafrique Tchoffo Deben, present at the ceremony, commended the Assembly for sustaining the initiative in the face of daunting challenges. He saluted the bravery of parents, teachers, and students who defied calls for school boycotts to keep education alive.
“The North West is occupying a very good position thanks to the diligence and boldness of our school children,” he said.
The governor urged communities to remain resilient and forgiving, emphasising that peace and collaboration are indispensable for the region’s recovery.
The ceremony came on the heels of the Assembly’s September session, which adopted a medium-term budgetary framework for 2026.
In his closing speech, Prof. Angwafo noted that while the Assembly has registered growth in its budgetary capacity rising from about 3 billion FCFA in 2021 to a projected 14 billion by 2028 its mission extends beyond figures.
“Having positive budgetary growth is one thing, successfully executing it to improve lives is another. Our collective responsibility is to ensure that peace, however fragile, is maintained so that development can follow,” he told members and guests.
By combining budget planning with recognition of academic excellence, the Assembly sought to reaffirm its dual commitment to long-term structural development and the nurturing of human capital. Regional authorities, the Public Independent Conciliator, judicial officials, and traditional rulers joined in the events, which many described as a reminder that education remains a path of resilience in the face of conflict.
As the Assembly nears the end of its first mandate, the continuity of the Excellence Awards has emerged as one of its most visible legacies. To students, parents, and teachers gathered in Bamenda, the pursuit of knowledge remains the cornerstone of the North West’s future.
By Bakah Derick for Hilltopvoices Newsroom
Email: hilltopvoicesnewspaper@gmail.com
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