CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the study

Non-Governmental Organisations(NGOs) according to the United Nations (UN) charter was adopted in 1945, it is a non-profits making organisation with the aim of improving government, environmental sustainability, support gender equality, eradicate extreme hunger and poverty, promote education to the less privilege, ensure quality healthcare at the local, national and international levels (Cassandra, 2022).Instrumental in advocating for women’s right at local, national and international levels NGOs engage in policy advocacy, pushing for validating and enforcement of laws that protects women’s right, eliminate discriminatory practices, and promote gender equality (Devyani, 2019).NGOs builds the capacity of civil society to engagewith climate related challenges, they empower local communities, indigenous groups and organisations to enhance their resilience to address environmental risk and come out with sustainable initiatives by fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration (Chiara, 1998). Non-Governmental in Canada works to raise public awareness about climate change and its environmental risks, and practice sustainable initiatives ecological impacts through educational campaigns, workshops, and community outstretch, they aim to inform citizens about the importance of climate actions and the steps individuals can take to reduce their carbon footprint (Kara, 2023).

In the case of the developed countries, NGOs have played a central role in building and strengthening community networks of individuals living with HIV, as well as individuals at risk of infection, this provide a platform for mutual support, knowledge sharing, advocacy and social engagement, fostering a sense of solidarity and empowerment within HIV affected communities in Japan (Vincent, 2005). One important objectives of NGOs is poverty reduction. With the policy of regional inequality, NGOs frequently work to improve healthcare access, providing medical services, establishing healthcare facilities, and running awareness campaigns. By addressing health disparities between regions, these efforts contribute to poverty reduction and overall wellbeing of the population (Moses et al., 2022).

Role of NGOs in the developing countries in fighting food security. protection of small farms, by frequent promotion of sustainable agricultural practices, conservation of natural resources, and resilience to climate change through initiatives focused on soil conservation, water management and biodiversity, water management and biodiversity preservation, NGOs helps  small farm maintain the productivity of their lands while minimising environmental degradation(Chris, 2007). Waste management is another problem in the developing countries. NGO frequently collaborate with local communities, business and government to develop and implement waste management strategies by facilitating partnerships, they create a network of support resources to address waste prevention (Kurian, 2006). Water crisis is a call for concern in the developing countries. Through various initiatives these organisations work to improve access to clean water and safe water resources. This can involve the development of infrastructures for clean water supply, water filtration systems, and sanitation facilities to mitigate health risks associated with contaminated water (Karin, 2003).

In the context of Africa, NGOs have played a crucial role in addressing human right activities, social, economic, and environmental challenges, such as human settlement, health, agriculture, working alongside governments and local communities to foster inclusive growth and social life (Aie, 2002). They function in various areas such as poverty alleviation, education, healthcare, environmental conservation, advocacy and capacity building (Fuseni, 2022).

In Sub Saharan Africa, refugee is one of the most striking issue. The United Nations Peace Keeping Force (UNPKF) has been playing a crucial role to maintain peace and security in this part of Africa. The UN has been involved in supporting the political transition in the Central African Republic (CAR). This include supporting the implementation of peace agreements, facilitating national dialogue and assisting in the preparation of elections to ensure a peaceful transition of power (Alexandra, 2021). Hunger and poverty in Somalia due to drought and locust. Addressing malnutrition and providing healthcare services is another critical area of focus for NGOs in Somalia, they work to establish and maintain nutrition and health programs, including the treatment of malnourished children, maternal health initiatives the provision of healthcare services to combat illnesses resulting from food insecurity (Mark, 2023).

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) has played a very vital role in fighting against child abuse in the North West Region. The UNHCR has implemented child protection programs designed to prevent and respond to child abuse, these initiative has a wide range of activities, including establishing safe spaces for children, providing psychological support, and offering specialised services for survivors of abuse.(UNHCR, 2019). Furthermore, Community Participation in Sustainable Development (COMPSUDEV)   Has been instrumental in enhancing the capacities and life standard of the needy communities in Bamenda III Subdivision, to improve on education and skills training programs for individuals in needy communities, this include initiatives such as establishing educational centres, offering scholarships, and providing vocational training to equip individuals with the skills needed for employment and entrepreneurship   (Compsudev, 2017).  Solutions to water scarcity in Bamenda III Subdivision promote climate resilient agricultural practices such as agroforestry and water efficient irrigation techniques to enhance the resilience of farming communities to water related challenges (Tume, 2022).

Non-Governmental Organisations has been more of blessings than a curse to the Bamenda III Subdivision as it has supported community development in social, economic and environmental challenges. Strategic Humanitarian Service (SHUMAS) has promoted environmental conservation and sustainable practices in the community through awareness programs and projects aimed at addressing environmental challenges, such as deforestation and soil erosion (Hillstopvoice, 2023). Inclusive education, Plan International has worked to promote inclusive education by advocating for accessible schools, providing specialised educational resources, and supporting the training of teachers to effectively accommodate the needs of students with disabilities in Bamenda III Subdivision (Fru, 2022).    

1.3 Organizational setup of Bamenda III Council

The Bamenda III council is arranged in a hierarchical manner as shown on Figure 1:1. The council is found in Mezam Division in the Northwest Region of Cameroon precisely in latitude 6’15 and 6’15N and latitude 10’02 and 6’15E of the green which meridian. The Bamenda III Council was created in 2007 by presidential decree No 2007/117 of the 24 April 2007.The following persons has rolled as Mayors Prince Ngwa Amadou from the SDF 2007 to 2010, Fonguh Cletus Tanwe from the SDF 2010 till present. There are 57 staffs of the Bamenda III council. The Bamenda III council is headed by the Mayor who is assisted by first and second deputy Mayors. Figure 1:1 below shows the organizational structure of the Bamenda III council.

Source : Council Development Plan (C.D.P 2020)

The Bamenda III council comprised of six departments and two posts based on appointments. These departments based in serving the municipality in particular and the nation in general in several ways. As such, it has numerous functions to perform in order to see into the well fair of the population in the municipality. This therefore explains why the organization is divided into different departments and services that functions according to the needs of the population. These departments include;

1. The water department
2. Technical department

• Hygiene and sanitation

1. Council Development Office
2. Market

They have posts base on appointments like the secretary general and Council Development Office (CDO).

1.3.1 The Water Department.

The department started in 2011 in Bamenda III council and has its partner from Germany. The Bamenda III council has the best quality of drinking water due to infiltration processes which is compared to SupperMont. The department is responsible for the following 

• Water supply to the population of Bamenda III municipality
• They move round to do meter readings
• Payments of water bills is being done
• They collection application

1.3.2 The Technical Department

The department is headed by a Service Chief, assisted by a deputy. The service is in charge of planning. It deals with town planning and issues pertaining to building and construction and they work together with the CDO. This department is in charge of the following;

• Go out to control building with or without building permits,
• Control temporary structures along the main road that 3 to 5meters away from the road and the owners pay what is known as temporary occupation fee,
• They issue town documents such as building permits, town planning certificate, demolition permit, location permit, and implantation permit
• They in charge of brining physical development to the municipality like infrastructure, planning, creation of green space and farm to markets roads.
• The department is in charge of protecting the council property.

1.3.3 The Hygiene and Sanitation Department

 This department is headed by a Sanitation Clerk, with its main aim and sole priority to ensure the practice of proper hygiene and sanitation measures in the municipality. As a result, the sanitary clerks accompanied by some of his co-workers go to the municipality to evaluate the efficient and effective practicing of some these sanitary measures. Some of which are;

• The nature and environment of some home especially those homes around the city centers. They check their environments, toilets and latrines as well as other aspects
• They as well do checks on the sanitary state of the bakeries, as well as that of their workers and they as well do a great check to ensure that every worker in the bakery possess a medical certificate.
• ŸThey also the charge and control holiday jobs organization in the council area
• They as well are the fore frontals in the organization of clean up campaigns in the municipality and many other sanitary activities.

From the above departments I was opportune during the 30days of internship exercise to work with the Technical Department, Water Department, Hygiene and Sanitation Department, Market and park Department and Council Development Office (CDO). In the Technical Service, tasks differed daily since it was between the office and the field. While in the office compliances were received based on improper construction and the chief in charge of the technical department assisted by the 1^st deputy major and other workers of the department will go and observed the area in question. During the internship, a field work was carried out to settle land dispute between two neighbors. To carry this activity, the following tools were used electrical theodolite which is a surveying instrument consisting of a small mounted telescope use in measuring the horizontal and vertical angles, a stake that is a piece of wood or other material usually long, sharp at the end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a marker. We also settled a dispute where a neighbour built and cross his or her boundary also marked building that we built in risky zones like in Sissia and structure beside the roads that didn’t gave 7meters area from the road were marked. In the course of the outing we try as much to sensitize the population on the Importance of having a building permit before carrying out construction.

In the water department, the task was mainly in the field that is at the water purification centre and we also visited the Menteh waterfall which is the main source of the water. At the purification centre they have two main tanks under use one of 80kilos and the other 200kilos for storing water and the third one is under construction (400kilos). Before treatment is done, a series of test is carried out like water chlorination. Chlorine is a strong oxidant that kills many harmful micro-organisms. As such water was purified and disinfected for human consumption (drinking). We also did back flushing. During the period of back flushing all the systems were shot down. This process was equally to clean the tanks this done one time in a day and when filters are blocked, it is being unblocked with air flushing. The main source of energy used at the treatment centre was solar energy.

In the Hygiene and Sanitation Department as well, I was able to go out to the field that was we had to move from Ghana street To Mile 2, checking the sanitary states of Bakeries during their production process and making sure Hygiene and sanitation measures like tying of head putting on of facemask and as well the cleanliness of the bakery too and we were also to ensure that all the bakery workers have their medical certificates. I was also opportune to visit individual homes with very poor hygiene and sanitary state and gave cautions too for a better environment.

In the Market and park, with I being present at the market, went round every corner and was able to discover the challenge of disposition of waste due to the lark of an adequate dumpsite and also the improper waste dumping (That is, the mixture of both organic and in organic waste) at the present one which in turn made the place nasty as well. Also another major challenge was the lack of water at the market and other challenges as of security and more. But to all these the council through the market master has taken measures like the organization of periodic clean up campaigns, sensitization on proper waste dumping measures and also there are looking forward to bring pipe born water to the market, and many other proposed solution in relation to the other challenges faced in the market.

1.4 Presentation of the Study Area

1.4.1 Location of the Study Area

The Bamenda III council is found in Mezam Division in the Northwest Region of Cameroon precisely in latitude 6’15 and 6’15N and latitude 10’02 and 6’15E of the green which meridian. The council is bounded to the East by Tubah Municipality, to the South by Bamenda 1 Municipality and to the West by Bamenda 2 Municipality as shown on figure 1:2. The Bamenda III has two main clans Nkwen and Ndazh.The natural site of Bamenda III is characterize by the Ndzah plateau to the South East, the Nkwen escarpment which divide Ndzah from Nkwen, undulating and well drained low lying terrain of Nkwen as well as several waterfalls and streams. The Bamenda III Council was created in 2007 by presidential decree No 2007/117 of the 24 April 2007. It was created alongside with Bamenda I and II sub-divisions. It is the seat of the regional administration of the North West Region. It has a total surface area of 22.9km² and an estimated population stands at 150,000. Figure 1:2 shows the map of north west region and the study area (Bamenda III).

1.4.2 Physical Aspects

1.4.2.1 Climate

The climate of Bamenda III is the tropical savannah climate, very closed to being classified as a tropical monsoon climate with long summer wet seasons and less rainfall in winter. The rainy season is usually from around mid-March to mid-October and sometimes extends to November. The rainfall ranges from 2400 to 3000mm in an average year. The dry season starts from October-February. The nights are very cold why the days are very hot with the driest month being January. The climate of Bamenda III influence land use change in that during the rainy season, farmer’s plants crops like beans, potatoes and vegetables which goes a long way to reduce hunger. The dry season reduces the water level and this leads to some streams drying off. NGOs can implement long term projects aimed at improving water infrastructure, including the drilling of boreholes, construction of wells, and implementation of water purification systems in communities facing chronic water scarcity in Bamenda III Subdivision. (Council Development Plan, 2020)

1.4.2.2 Relief

The Bamenda III council area shows a wide variety in its relief, with altitudes ranging from 1300 m and 2600 m above sea level. Characteristic features include many hills with gentle to steep slopes. Most of the high-altitude parts of the Municipality constitute most of the Bamenda escarpment which give rise to fascinating waterfalls and breath-taking arrangement of rocks for example the waterfalls in Sissia I and IV and the Rock arrangement above New-Layout and Sissia I.  The escarpment gives the Municipality a unique touristic potential. The natural hills and slopes especially around Ndzah and Nkwen escarpment serve as potential touristic sites of the council (CDP, 2020). Also the gentle slopes and plains of Nkwen areas have greatly influenced human settlement and commercial activities. The hilly nature of some areas of the environment is a problem to food crop production. This speeds up the rate of soil erosion, leading to soil infertility and subsequently high cost of production. NGOs are implementing terracing techniques and soil conservation measures to prevent soil erosion on hilly slopes, helping to retain fertile soils and reduce degradation, hereby supporting sustainable agriculture, to improve on yields reduce the cost of food crop production. 

1.4.2.3 Soils

Penevoluted ferralitic soils are found mostly in the lowly-lying area of Nkwen, while some of the highland areas of Nkwen and particularly Ndzah have modified orthic soils. Given the hilly nature of some of these areas, most of the soils on the mountain slopes have been washed down to the valleys forming a rich zone of fertile soils. This has greatly influenced the type of material used for construction; sun-dried bricks, and crops like Irish potatoes; cabbage, carrots and species are grown on the rich valley soils. However, eucalyptustrees are planted in some of the areas, which have heavily leached soils. Bamenda III has very fertile soils for agriculture and pasture from alluvial deposit and good pasture land in the hills of Ndzah.Population growth and the need for agriculture has put a lot of pressure on the soil. (CDP, 2020) Organisations are promoting the diversification of livelihoods through the introduction of alternative income generating activities such as beekeeping, small scale non-agricultural enterprises and eco-tourism initiatives, thereby reducing the exclusive dependency on cultivation.

1.4.2.4 Vegetation

The Bamenda III is situated in the savannah zone and has several of vegetation which include; a sub montane forest, which has been greatly degraded, and a montane forest domesticated sub montane landscape. The landscape is mainly grass with fringes of forest along the gentle slopes and narrow valleys. Fulani‘s occupies the grassland areas of the mountain slopes for grazing. Extensive grass cover can be found around the rural areas of Nkwen, and especially on the Ndzah hills in carpet-like shape, which gives a touch of beauty to the landscape. However, the vegetation types have greatly degenerated over the years (CDP, 2020). This has been as a result of constant bush fires set by hunters and grazers and sometimes accidentally by farmers who practice slash and burn, not leaving out the effects of urban sprawl. Some of the natural forest found in the Santa-Ngemba forest zone of Ndzah is being exploited for timber and clearing to extend farming land. The council area is also very rich in planted eucalyptus vegetation. Most of the lowland areas have been cleared to make room for the cultivation of market gardening crops notably cabbage, Irish potatoes, carrots and spices. The forest in Bamenda III has been greatly degraded by anthropogenic action for difference activities such as agriculture and settlements. Knowledge sharing and capacity building programs facilitate research initiatives, knowledge exchange programs and training sessions to enhance the capacity of local communities and stake holders in sustainable forest management and conservation practices.

1.4.3.1 Human Aspects

1.4.3.2Agriculture

Agriculture is the main human activity in Bamenda III municipality. All the inhabitants in this area are involved in agriculture in one way or the other. Agriculture is becoming even at the urban space. The agricultural schedule show that cultivation is continues especially for vegetables (CDP, 2020). Harvesting is mostly done from July to September annually. Major crops cultivated include; Bananas, Plantains, Irish, sweet potatoes, maize, beans, cowpea, groundnuts, yams, huckleberry, and fruits li

ke peas, mangoes, plums and lemons. Most of the lands are owned by families and managed by them. They use both organic and inorganic fertilizers and leguminous plants for soil fertility purposes. Competition between agricultural land and land meant for construction as a result there is the Practice of agriculture on any available space, even on the edge of roads. NGOs works with local communities to advocate for land rights, promote participatory land use planning, and support the establishment structures, ensuring that local voices are heard indecision-making processes related to land use and management.

1.4.3.3 Settlement Pattern

Within the Bamenda III Council Area, houses were commonly constructed using typical mud blocks and grass roofed tops. However, the traditional housing patterns of the area have been greatly modified over the years. Thatched houses that were formally popular are no longer common in the communities, giving rise to modern and durable house construction pattern whereby cement blocks and tiles are used for construction, while corrugated iron sheets are used for roofing. Settlement pattern of Bamenda III ranges from nuclear/clustered, compact, dispersed and scattered settlement. (CDP, 2020).

1.4.3.4 Economic activity

There are a variety of economic activities carried out within the Bamenda III municipality. These included the following: Animal husbandry, Grinding mills, Arts shops, filling stations, Documentation Services, Cyber cafés, call box/credit transfer, Hair dressing/Barbing Saloons, Inn/lodging services, Market gardening, Motor cycle repairs, Motor park, Off-licenses, Palm wine sales, Restaurants, Hotels, Spare parts stores (motor cycle), Super markets, Tailoring, Transportation services (Motor cycle riding, bus agencies etc.), Video clubs, and General Provision. However, about 70% of the total population lives on agriculture, while about 10% are civil servants, and about 20% are traders. The natural forest is under threat as illegal exploitation of the forest is being practised with impunity (CDP, 2020). The forest is exploited for habitat reasons (wood for construction). Collaborative research initiatives partner with local research institutions and community groups to monitor forest ecosystems, assessing the impact of logging activities, and facilitate the development informed strategies for sustainable forest management and conservation.

1.5 Statement of the research problem

Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) operating in community development in Bamenda III subdivision are faced with various challenges which may impact their effectiveness in delivering services and support to the community. Below are some of the common challenges faced by non-governmental organisations operating in Bamenda III subdivision.

Political instability or changes in government, affects the operating environment for leading to the disruption of services. Unrest or political conflicts disrupts the delivery of services and the implementation of projects by NGOs. Roadblocks, curfews or disruption in communication and transport networks hinders the timely delivery of aids to communities in need.

The capacity to monitor and evaluate the impacts of community development projects is crucial but can be challenging for NGOs due to limited resources, technical, expertise and data collection mechanisms. Engaging the community in monitoring and evaluation processes is crucial for their ownership of development initiatives. However, gaining active participation and feedback from community members can be challenging, especially in areas where there may be trust issues or varying levels of illiteracy. Solutions to the problems faced by NGOs and community development in Bamenda III subdivision will be seen below.

Fostering meaningful engagement with the community through regular communication, involvement in decision-making processes, and active participation in project design and implementation. Conducts community consultations to ensure that initiatives are aligned with the needs and priorities of the local population.

Improve data collection mechanisms, invest in technology for data management, and prioritize the use of evidence-based decision-making. Train staff in data collection methods and analysis techniques to ensure that monitoring and evaluation processes are rigorous and informative.