AYA's Transformative Impact: Highlights of This Year's Progress

The long standing partnership between African Youth Alliance and Rockflower stands as a testament to the transformative power of focused efforts. Through establishing the multi-year Five Keys in Five Villages project, targeted progress-driven initiatives are creating a brighter future for women and girls in rural Cameroon.

Over the past year, African Youth Alliance has achieved significant milestones in their mission to improve the lives of women and girls in Cameroon through community collaboration. Their recent progress report showcases the remarkable work they have done this year across the five key pillars despite the challenges they faced.

Promoting Peace and Security

AYA facilitated interactive sessions around peace and security, which involved members of local government and focused on finding ways to disseminate valuable and often taboo information at the family level. Challenges arose as some women hesitated to participate due to concerns about family safety. However, health talks addressing Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR), particularly concerning HIV/AIDS, were conducted in collaboration with a community nurse to create a safe space to discuss these topics. The organization also held meaningful discussions around girls' rights by tackling issues like early child marriage and teenage pregnancy. 

Maternal and Reproductive Health Advocacy

AYA engaged community nurses, field staff, and trainers to address critical matters regarding MRH. Educational sessions on SRHR, HIV/STIs, family planning, and the consequences of early marriage were conducted. The organization succeeded in creating a safe space for women to speak freely and ask important questions. Additionally, the provision of reusable sanitary pads during Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) gatherings was a milestone in supporting women's health and hygiene. Trainings were also held around rash ointment and Vaseline production which added a practical dimension to maintaining family well-being.

Access to Food and Water

A great deal of progress was made in this area through farm work, seed donations, and organic farming training. Despite hurdles such as increased commodity prices and network failures, the AYA’s dedication led to improved crop productivity, ensuring food security and enhanced living standards for both families and the community. Strikingly, amidst a road blockade caused by armed groups, the donation of cabbage, beans, and potatoes seeds proved life-saving, ensuring sustenance for families.

Empowering Through Education

Through trainings, peer mentoring, and coaching, AYA enabled young girls to become active in their communities and gain skills to further their careers. Sessions on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and the negative consequences of early marriage encouraged girls to maintain independence and make smart choices. Development workshops held on topics like paper bead production, making lotion, and powdered soap provided opportunities to create their own businesses.

Fostering Economic Empowerment

This year, AYA focused on helping small business owners to grow their businesses. They provided financial literacy training, and enabled group members to expand their business offerings. Their revolving loan scheme provided critical funding to these small businesses and continues to grow and improve the local economy. Through these efforts, the organization contributed to increased economic independence and self-sufficiency.

As this partnership looks to the future, African Youth Alliance envisions a continued journey of progress and growth. Their plans include establishing an adult literacy school to address educational gaps, harnessing solar energy for improved communication, and expanding skill development opportunities in areas like sewing, hairdressing, and bead designing. The organization's unwavering commitment to engaging men in crucial programs and amplifying the voices of women and girls reflects their holistic approach to sustainable change.

The collaboration between African Youth Alliance and Rockflower stands as a testament to the transformative power of focused efforts. Through progress-driven initiatives, they are creating a brighter future for women and girls in Cameroon, exemplifying the impact of the five keys.

Update on AYA’s Five Keys in Five Villages Project

Rockflower partner, African Youth Alliance, based in Cameroon, has been working to support seven groups of women in five different villages, utilizing Rockflower’s Five Key Framework. The project includes thoughtful elements that serve to improve the women’s quality of life through training focused on peace and security, maternal and reproductive health, access to food and water, education, and economic empowerment. This two year project has faced a great deal of challenges as a result of the pandemic, however, since resuming activities in March of 2021, the project has had a great impact on the lives of women, and has pivoted to include COVID-19 prevention education into their curriculum. AYA has provided an update on the program and its impact on the community.

Peace and Security:

AYA held a number of group discussions on peace and security to help women to better manage crises and conflict in their own homes and communities. The rate of physical and/or sexual violence toward women from intimate partners in Cameroon is 51%. More than half of the women attending these sessions had themselves been victims of domestic and/or sexual violence. The trainings not only taught them how to react and de-escalate conflict and violence, but how to protect themselves and understand their rights and power in these situations. 

At the end of each training session, the women were encouraged to stay in contact with one another and continue to have conversations on these topics. The group labeled themselves as ‘Community Peace Ambassadors’ and as such committed to sharing knowledge regularly, providing training to others, informing their community that they can be contacted in times of crisis, as well as working together to identify problems and seek solutions for women’s safety.

Group participant, Petra Mbom, a 25 year old, single and a mother told AYA, “I have benefitted as well as my group because we have been taught that women also have rights and that they can stand firm to defend themselves. Also from the lectures given we are able to settle disputes in our families and in our community and we hope to change certain aspects in our community. That is, allowing women to have rights to landed property is our target.”

Maternal and Reproductive Health:

AYA knew that focusing on women’s reproductive and sexual health was one of the most important aspects of this project. Since the women in these groups have received little, if any education on their sexual health, the potential for impact was immense. 

The primary focus areas for these sessions were education on HIV/AIDS, family planning, and menstruation. AYA enlisted the help of community nurses to stress the importance of learning their HIV/AIDS status, help them to understand the damage caused by stigamitizing and discriminating against other women based on their status, and to educate women who are HIV positive on how to stop the spread. 

In terms of family planning, the group focused on practices that would promote the health of both the mother and child, such as spacing out births. This topic was particularly impactful, as some of the women came to the session with the belief that they were going to be discouraged from having children, which was not the case. 

One participant explained, “Family planning has been taught in our group and we now understand that family planning does not mean women should stop giving birth or should not give birth, but it helps women to space their births and maintain a healthy family. Also, we now know the importance of reusable sanitary pads, how to use and take proper care of the pads.” Overall, the participants learned a great deal about caring for themselves as they navigate childbirth, sexually transmitted illnesses, and menstruation.

Access to Food and Water:

This portion of the project focused primarily on agriculture and land stewardship. Many of the women who participated in this training were already farmers by trade, while others were interested in gardening to supplement their family’s food supply. Some of the skills taught included preparing land for farming or gardening, propagating and nursing fruit trees, and understanding root systems.

The women also gained knowledge on land stewardship and conservation. They began a project in which they mapped out sites that would be considered unsafe or risky for farming, which led to a much higher success rate of crops in the area. This was the first time that the community conducted a study of land types, and it will have great long-term benefits. Through this mapping the women learned about the impacts of deforestation, land erosion and overfarming. They also learned about and implemented compost piles, harvested cabbage from community gardens and began an initiative titled “Operation One Man One Tree” in which each participant will plant a tree and encourage friends and family to do the same.

One participant, Ngwainmbi Mercy, who is 26 years old, married and a mother of two children said she has benefitted from the agricultural techniques that she learned through AYA’s training. Her and her group have been able to cultivate carrots, cabbages, and beans and this has helped them to provide food for their families and communities.

Education:

Due to the immense success and positive feedback from the maternal and reproductive health education, AYA decided to focus their education training on female empowerment. Several group meetings were held in which the groups discussed the negative impacts of early marriage and teenage pregnancy. They also gained valuable insight about the role of sexuality for women, which is generally considered taboo to discuss. Much of the conversation focused on the importance of fighting for their rights, maintaining good self esteem, and discrediting many cultural norms and traditions that serve to keep women out of positions of power. 

After this training, the women felt that they had a better understanding of how to live their lives with dignity, without shame and how to encourage the next generation of women to lead fulfilling lives. 

Juscentha Fukuin, a 40 year old mother of four children told AYA that she will no longer encourage her children to marry at a young age. 

Another participant, fourteen year old Belva Ndum said “I have benefitted from the lectures on general hygiene, and I can now take good care of myself. I have hope in the future despite the crisis and the closure of schools. I also know I have to work hard if I want to be a good leader in future.”

The sessions typically ended with goal setting, where the women were able to discuss what they hoped to achieve, and how they could support one another to achieve those goals. 

Economic Empowerment:

The final pillar of AYA’s training focused on ensuring that the participants had an understanding of how to manage a small business. In these training sessions, they learned basic accounting principles, book keeping, how to evaluate business growth, identifying financial setbacks, and strategies to overcome setbacks.

AYA also created a revolving loan scheme, in which each of the women would contribute a certain amount of their income to provide loans to others. As their businesses grow, so would the fund, and more businesses could emerge. This year, the women were able to fund half of their goal for the revolving loan scheme. As their businesses gradually grew throughout the year, the group was able to achieve a 44.6% profit from the sales of items like manure, salt, soap, and body lotions. This also served as a hands on lesson in deducting expenses in order to calculate profit.

One business owner, Carine Bih, benefited greatly from this education. She learned that a business and the business owner are separate entities, and that it’s possible for the business owner to owe money to the business. She had been operating a doughnut stand for years, and had seen almost no profit. She told AYA that she would often give donuts away to her friends and family, but she wasn’t clear on the fact that when she did that, she would have to owe the cost of those ingredients to the business. Through the group training, she came to understand that she was the reason that her business was not profitable, and she learned how to keep record of any product that she gives away so that she can pay it back to the business. 

Many of the women involved in the program had been running businesses for years with no education on how to maintain and account for their business. This education has been invaluable to them as they now are able to recognize their profits and plan for their futures.

Overall, the training and resources provided by AYA has had an immense impact on improving the participants’ knowledge of their rights, especially sexual and reproductive rights, food security, income and agricultural skills. For these rural women in Cameroon, many of whom are young and/or single mothers, this education will serve to allow them to improve their quality of life and that of their families as they plan for the future. AYA noted that due to the challenges faced by these women, including extreme poverty, domestic violence, and child marriages, the program has been met with more than enthusiasm. The women are delighted and eager to better their lives and work together to improve their communities.

A Year in Reflection: African Youth Alliance Reports on Year One of the Five Keys Five Villages Project

In 2020, female-led and volunteer-run community-based organization, African Youth Alliance, overcame a number of unique struggles but still managed to persevere in their mission to empower rural women and girls in the North West Region of Cameroon. AYA has been a Rockflower partner for five years but recently undertook a two year, multi-key approach to prove the merits of community based education and empowerment. Since beginning their two year project with Rockflower, AYA has been able to develop and build the skills of over 350 women and girls from 5 vulnerable rural communities.

In this first year of the project AYA volunteers educated women on topics including female leadership, family planning, community health, agricultural practices, basic accounting principles and more. Early sessions on hygiene, community health and agricultural practices played a key role in community resiliency during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the pandemic caused AYA to suspend operations temporarily, with the support of Rockflower the organization was able to provide its participants with critically important PPE and even began producing soap powder. In communities affected by conflict, the women focused on identifying challenges they faced in their current situations and collaborated to determine methods for acting as mediators of peace in their communities.

Despite the challenges faced by AYA and its participants, the organization has made great strides in educating and economically empowering women to become leaders in their communities. The women were able to move forward with producing goods like soap and body lotion as well as establishing and harvesting crops from farms and gardens. AYA has even been able to issue a number of loans to women looking to scale their agricultural operations. Looking ahead to year two, AYA hopes to expand their education sessions and ensure that all of the women involved are on the path to becoming fully empowered community leaders.

Continuing Reproductive Health through the COVID-19 Pandemic

African Youth Alliance, based in Cameroon, is led by Roseline and her team were just beginning their work on the Five Keys in Five Villages project at the start of this year before they had to pivot and regroup to address the needs imposed by the spread of COVID-19. This 2-year project was designed exclusively by AYA and the villages, to prove and track how each of the five keys overlaps and impacts each other. Through regular meetings to share findings and resources, they plan to offer a comprehensive review of why funding locally-led initiatives is the key to progress. The following is an edited excerpt from an interim report. 

"The village of Tumuku was assigned the key of Maternal and Reproductive Health. With the support of a community volunteer, the nurse had detailed discussion sessions with the groups in Tumuku village on the following topics to make sure that the members understood these topics: reproductive health, family planning, and general hygiene. With respect to reproductive health, she defined both terms, reproduction and health, for the group to understand them separately before highlighting the difference between the reproductive health of a female and a male. The group was able to freely talk about issues relating to females, such as breast and hip development and menstruation, and how they noticed a change in their muscles, deep voice, development of axillary and facial hairs for males. The women and girls were urged to practice safe sex with the right person as well as carry out regular medical checks in order to ensure they were in good health. Family planning was also defined during the brainstorming session, and a detailed explanation was given on the different methods of birth control including the natural method, a condom, pills, withdrawal method, and tubal ligation. Breastfeeding was discussed. The practices of good personal hygiene and to have a balanced diet for healthy living were encouraged. To round up the group lectures, the nurse educated the women and girls in attendance on basic and necessary hygienic measures, such as hand washing before and after meals or a visit to the toilet, washing of the head/face, taking a bath at least once or twice daily and when you do hard labor to avoid the use of bleaching agent on your body as it will remove melanin. It is worth noting that these activities were very educational and important because it built a foundation of knowledge for the women and girls to care for themselves in order to continue to stay healthy during this latest crisis of COVID-19."

Progress Update from Youth African Alliance

Loriane, 12

“My group has helped me to have more confidence in myself; I meet other girls with whom I share a lot of things.”

Diana, 34, Treasurer of her Group

“I am so proud and so grateful to be a member of my group and for all the support and lectures we receive. I am a housewife and I have not had the opportunity to go to school or to receive any training, I used to rely on my husband for every need. Now, I generate some income from the various designs of chains, bangles and other jewelry that I produce and I am able to support him in our home.”

Brendaline, 30

Brendaline received a microloan of $45 USD. She now has a vegetable and small food items stall. She supports her family, pays for necessary medication and her children’s education.

Sandra, 16

“I am a student. I was sponsored by the African Youth Alliance to learn how to produce jewelry with paper and plastic beads. I now volunteer to train other women and girls of the association. I love interacting with everyone and I am also happy to be able to generate some income.”

Martha, 23

“I am grateful for all the skills and mentoring I have received so far in my group. We have learned how to do various things, like making powder soap, body lotion, baking cakes, beads, and more. We discuss various subjects like goal setting and leadership that are very helpful for my personal development.”

Elizabeth, 25

“I am very excited about the computer training. A part from learning Word, Excel and Powerpoint, we learned how to use social media to advertise our products and to look for opportunities. I am so happy to have this opportunity to learn new skills, they will be very useful for my studies and small businesses I do.”

Yvonne, 35

Yvonne benefited from a microloan of $90 USD. She started a business where she rears and sells fowl. The credit assistance and her business has made it possible for her to support her husband in finishing the renovations of their house and her family, including payments for her children’s education.

In January 2018 Rockflower invested in a partnership with the Youth African Alliance in West Cameroon. The project was specifically designed to provide basic literacy and social entrepreneurship skills to highly marginalized young women with the outcome being potential for employment and improved quality of life. 70 women and girls are participating in three separate groups. 

The groups meet twice a month and provide safe discussion spaces for the young women to improve their skills through peer mentoring. 

These new skills include soap and body lotion production, arts and crafts, baking and the production of reusable sanitary pads. The girls have also been learning basic accounting and computer literacy which can be used for social entrepreneurship and school.

The overall dialogue has contributed to a sense of empowerment for the young women in being free to express challenges and offer solutions.

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