At end of annual confab: Women's empowerment minister tasks staff to apply skills acquired.

“We have placed the 2025 Annual Conference under the dual banner of free access to social services and the mobilisation of non-tax revenue necessary for the functioning of the State. During two days of intense and enriching discussions, we focused on highlighting innovative strategies and proposing solutions tailored to our sub-sector. We reaffirmed our commitment to ensure equitable access to basic social services, while actively contributing to the mobilisation of additional financial resources,” the minister said.

She instructed participants to share the knowledge acquired during the conference with their colleagues who were unable to attend. 

“It is through this spirit of knowledge-sharing and teamwork that we shall fulfil the Head of State’s commitment to strengthen the social role of women, protect vulnerable groups including children and promote family stability,” she said.   

To Minister Abena Ondoa, they have laid the foundations for a balanced approach that will enable workers to meet the needs of their target populations, while ensuring the sustainability of their initiatives. “It is now up to us to transfer these ideas into concrete actions, so that the recommendations made here can lead to tangible results on the field,” she stated.

The annual conference, she said, has undoubtedly enabled them to appreciate the full extent of the task. 

“I am confident in your ability to capitalise on the lessons learned during the proceedings. I therefore urge you to ensure the effective implementation of these results, under the coordination of the Secretary General, so that women and families in Cameroon may receive what they are legitimately entitled to expect from us,” she said. 

Regarding the alarming increase in gender-based violence in the country and in light of current social developments, the minister instructed her collaborators to work at their various levels to ensure the 116 Child Helpline number is known widely.

She went further to call on them to intensively popularise the Law No. 2024/016 of 23 December 2024 on the organisation of the civil registration system in Cameroon. 

“This legislative reform provides concrete solutions to the challenges faced by our target populations. These include the legal recognition of traditional marriages, the reconstitution of civil status documents for internally displaced persons and the extension of the deadline for birth declarations,” she disclosed. 

These important pieces of information, Minister Marie Thérèse said can have a significant impact on the daily lives of vulnerable social groups under their responsibility.

She insisted on the fact that the ministry must play its role in promoting peace before, during and after the forthcoming electoral events. 

“To this end, we must all actively engage in widespread awareness campaigns against hate speech and stigmatisation,” she said. 

Participants express satisfaction

Speaking to the press at the close of the confab, the North West Regional Delegate of Women’s Empowerment, Wirba Asan Litinyuy, noted that: “We had 19 recommendations and once we go back to the field, we are going to work with our collaborators and ensure that together with those at the decentralised levels, we can see how we can implement them so that when we come next year for the annual conference, we will be able to have a good situation on how the recommendations have been carried out in the field”. 

He noted that they leave with so much satisfaction particularly because for the first time, the minister gave the opportunity to the sub-divisional delegates to be part of the conference. 

Like Wirba, the Centre Regional Delegate, Nguele Meyanga Elie Bernard, on his part, stated that he leaves satisfied and with one message at heart. 

“I retained one thing from the message of the minister which is valorising Law No. 2024/016 of 23 December 2024 on the organisation of the civil registration system in the country so that no child will go without a birth certificate,” Nguele noted.

Summary of recommendations

At the end of the confab, some 19 recommendations were arrived at among them the need to organise capacity-building sessions for stakeholders and other social actors in emerging areas of social action; take stock of financial and material support received from Technical and Financial Partners, TFPs, over the past two years; continue reflections to determine the legal status of Multipurpose Processing Units and Reception Centres for Women in Distress; limit the interventions of officials to mediation as regards marital and family conflict management, for more safety, while giving preference to invitations over summons;