South West: SMEs ministry equips 401 youth in Mamfe with agro-processing skills.

The beneficiaries, MINPMEESA revealed, were drawn from different sectors of the Mamfe municipality and received practical training in fruit juice production and chocolate manufacturing among others. The exercise was organised under the theme: “Youth Empowerment for Agro-Food Processing: A Lever for Import Substitution”.

According to MINPMEESA, the training was intended to give participants practical skills that could help them enter entrepreneurship and establish small production units. The ministry added that it also sought to encourage young people to transform agricultural raw materials available in Manyu Division into finished products for the local market.

The ministry explained that the division has several agricultural commodities, including fruits, cocoa and palm oil. MINPMEESA said through processing, the beneficiaries can use these resources to develop income-generating activities and produce goods that would otherwise be purchased from outside the locality.

According to the ministry, the programme comes amid efforts to expand economic opportunities for young Cameroonians. It stressed that the Mamfe programme seeks to address the skills component of the employment challenge by preparing participants for self-employment and small-scale production. The ministry revealed that the September training follows an earlier training organised for women and girls on March 6, 2026.

MINPMEESA has also announced larger training sessions for November as part of the eighth edition of Global Entrepreneurship Week. The activities, it said, will be held in Mamfe, Upper Bayang and Eyumojock.

The planned sessions, according to the ministry, will focus on skills development and innovation. Participants, MINPMEESA said, will also receive information about business-support and financing opportunities available through the ministry. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3911 of Wednesday September 16, 2026