Poverty gap teaching appeal in Cameroon

Fresh calls have been made to provide more financial incentives to attract the most talented teachers in Cameroon to schools serving deprived or controlled opposition municipalities.

The demand came after it emerged more than 250 municipalities over 350 have come bottom of a new national league table that records the gap between reading and the writing skills of the cleverest pupils from both affluent and deprived areas.

Research by the leading teachers`union based in Yaounde revealed the difference in achievement between all the public schools  in the country. The worst areas are those in the opposition controlled municipalities. It comes after one of the opposition leader and prominent challenger to the acting Cameroon Head of State by the help of some internal reports from the leading teachers national union revealed inspections are failed by almost one in three primary and secondary schools in deprived areas.

Jean Marc Bikoko, one of the most influential civil servant union activist said  he " was sympathetic to the idea of encouraging staff and head teachers with a proven track record to kick-start schools failing to achieve acceptable levels in provinces and not just wanting to stay in the capital close to the administration.." and also suggested " the attainment gap could be closed by getting the best leaders and teachers into the areas where they were needed the most..." before describing the actual regime as the " enemy of the education, growth and prosperity.."

Ruefli Hafi said " providing a financial incentive would be a positive step forward even the latest figures on reading and writing are appalling and after more than 29 years of Biya`s administration and the failure of their national education policy, it is something we should all be concerned about.."

There is a real and urgent need for the country benefit as a whole to " put a lot more funding into early years education to ensure this gap is eradicated because we know intervention does work if it is done early enough....

 Enough public monies have been diverted for unnecessary expenditure and it is time to change direction and vision and think about giving financial incentives to actively recruit the most gifted and effective teachers and leaders. We know our education system at the moment has failed and we have to address this and increase the gap as children get older and public funding has to go into narrowing the gap at an early stage and sustaining that gain through the life of the young person.." he said.

He then concluded by saying that  " policy-makers must turn their attention to reducing inequalities in educational achievement among the brightest children in society, to ensure those from disadvantaged families in controlled opposition municipalities around the country are not left behind.."

London2012: Mpah welcomes Cameroon`s Olympians in Aberdeen

Councillor Willie Young of Aberdeen City Council in Scotland and Patrice Mpah, the acting president of the Cameroon association in Aberdeen have welcomed the first half of the Cameroon Olympic Team in the UK ahead of the Olympic Games.

On Sunday 15 July in Aberdeen, the Cameroon women`s Olympic football team will face Scotland women`s squad at the Aberdeen Sports Village.

 After the Olympic torch fewer it will be an opportunity for football fans to see and appreciate an Olympian team in action.

There are athletes, coaches, managers, physiotherapists and officials. Mr Essama, the head of the Cameroon Olympic team delegation arrived at Aberdeen Airport with a team of around 60 Cameroonians eager to make history at the London Olympic Games.

After their arrival in Scotland, the Cameroon Olympic team members were greeted by the piper and were taken straight to the Aberdeen Sports Village, where the delegation will spend some time before heading down South the Borders for the games. The Aberdeen Sports Village  is the premier sports facility in the North East of Scotland hosting an array of first class sporting facilities. 

This venture is the realisation of a vision first discussed in 2003 by funding partners, the University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen City Council and sportscotland.

 The mission is to deliver high quality sport services and it will be a huge opportunity for the athletes to build up their strength, technique and qualities before the games.

 Patrice Mpah a father of two and an oil engineer working at one of the Aberdeen oil company has managed with his friends to welcome the delegation and to show some around the City.

 Athletes have been accommodated at the Linksfield Road. They are happy with the standard of the facility and can also move around to visit the area and talk to people. Cameroon should be grateful to Aberdeen City Council as they have managed to create a join venture with their partners in order to offer a great opportunity to the Olympians and provide them with a tailored  training programmes designed to prepare them for the build up leading to the Olympic campaign.

 The false start of the Olympic campaign in UK is the absence of M. Nkwelle Ekaney, the Cameroon High Commissioner or any official from the London`office at the welcoming reception of the delegation in Aberdeen Airport. 

It will be very interesting to know if at the London`s office something has been put in place in order to welcome the Olympic delegation.

 The official communication around the arrival of the Cameroon Olympic team has failed where citizens`journalism and social media have took over the control of the communication. For more updated infos about the Cameroon`s Olympians, just follow the link here .http://www.okabol.com/

 Patrice Mpah ( in pic wearing a blue shirt  with friends)  who is the acting president of the Cameroon association in Aberdeen has played a huge and important role since the arrival of the Olympic delegation in Aberdeen. People are calling for Patrice Mpah to receive an honour for what he has done since the arrival of the delegation. People in Aberdeen now are showing their deep interest on Cameroon and also on the  Cameroon`s culture. 

Without any public funding the group has put the strong delegation team members at ease by facilitating their stay while officials in London haven`t managed to travel to Aberdeen.