Cameroon Red Cross says 10,366 MFCFA needed to support 2.5 million persons.

The figures were revealed during a ceremony in Yaounde to unveil the body’s Unified Operational Plan 2023-2025.

The ceremony, which took place yesterday, was chaired by the National President of Cameroon Red Cross, Cecile Akame Mfoumou, in the presence of the Minister of Public Service and Administrative Reforms, Joseph Le. 

Members of diplomatic missions, UN agencies, partner international organisations and other stakeholders also marked their presence at the event. 

According to the CRC president, Cameroon is facing numerous crises including socio-political strives in the North West and South West Regions and Boko Haram insurgency in the Far North Region. This, she added, has been worsen by the conflict in neighbouring Central African Republic, causing an influx of refugees into the East, Adamawa and North regions, bringing the total number of people in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in Cameroon to 4.7 million, going by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA 2023 estimates. 

Going by Mfoumou, the 2023-2025 Plan requires 10,366 million FCFA spread across five pillars of the plan, notably climate and environmental, disaster and crises, health and wellbeing, migration and displacement as well as value, power and inclusion.    

In the area of health and wellbeing, the CRC prioritises activities to control cholera and other diseases, raise awareness of barrier measures and promote the vaccine.

Regarding the promotion of value, power and inclusion, the CRC plans to implement a reporting and data collection system and GBV pilot projects.

“Providing an effective and efficient response to the need of communities requires the pooling of efforts of all humanitarian stakeholders and beyond,” she said. 

She further took the commitment on behalf of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in Cameroon and CRC to build more resilient communities in support of public actions.  

She also used the opportunity to acknowledge the traditional support in various forms from government and other partners for their activities. 

“We also want to thank the many chancelleries as well as the UN systems and private companies whose substantial support have always been beneficial to the achievement of our missions. Thanks to many of you, we have responded effectively to COVID-19 with the help of USAID, UNICEF and several others,” she added. 

She called on them not to relent their efforts to continually support the new three-year plan by providing financial, technical or logistics supports, enabling favourable environment, sharing constructive ideas and by engaging with them in searching of resources.