Over 10,000 Provided Potable Water

A local Non-governmental Organisation, NGO, 'Clean Water For Life', with the support of the Korskyrkan Baptist Church of G?vle in Sweden, has in the past three years assisted over 10,000 people from six communities in Boumba and Ngoko Division of the East Region and Donga-Mantung Division of the North West Region to carry out small-scale water projects.

The charity's board, represented by the President, Nfor Silas, Vice President, David Ngwani and the project consultant, Thomas Martensson, recently paid a courtesy visit to the Cameroon News and Publishing Corporation, SOPECAM headquarters in Yaounde. Speaking to Cameroon Tribune, Nfor Silas said the project is supported by a former Swedish Baptist missionary in the Central African Republic, CAR, Thomas Martensson. Martensson's church runs a second hand shop whose proceeds are used in executing the projects.

Apart from cost-effective, small-scale running water projects, some communities were trained and offered water treatment facilities such as solar energy UV, sparrow and bio-sand filters. They were also trained on water boiling techniques. The beneficiary communities so far are Baka pygmy camps in Libongo in Boumba and Ngoko Division and Ngarbuh, Nsam, Ngvulu-Makop, Kuma-Talla and Ntaba area of Mbaw Plain in Donga-Mantung Division.

The average project costs about FCFA Five million, with each community supplying local material like sand, labour and stones. 'Clean Water For Life' provides the know-how, part of the labour as well as the rest of the construction material. The charity as at now has about 40 communities that have expressed interest in being assisted, but a maximum of four projects are planned for 2014.

Thomas Martensson promised his church's readiness to continue to sponsor the projects for five years. He said after working for over 16 years in the rain forest areas of CAR, he discovered a different mentality in people in the North West Region who are always ready to get on immediately with their water projects as soon as they are briefed.