Samuel Eto'o named African Footballer of the Year!!!!!!

Samuel Eto’o, the face of soccer in Africa, was named the continent’s player of the year Monday, the fourth time the Cameroon forward has won the award.

Eto’o beat out Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast and Asamoah Gyan of Ghana for the award voted on by the coaches and captains of all 53 African national teams.

This year was the biggest in African soccer history, and it began with Eto’o and Drogba competing to be the face of the game on the continent. Both strikers led their teams in the African Cup of Nations in Angola in January. Eto’o set an African Cup scoring record and Drogba’s panache garnered much of the attention, but neither Cameroon, eliminated by Nigeria, nor Ivory Coast, knocked out by Algeria, made it past the quarterfinal. Gyan, the third finalist for the 2010 award, led Ghana to the final, where the Black Stars finished second to Egypt.

Eto’o was the model for the 2010 World Cup poster, which was based on the player’s distinct profile. He has won the European Champions League with Barcelona and Inter Milan, and just the other day hoisted the Club World Cup trophy after a goal and an assist in the final in Abu Dhabi.

-NY Times

CFDP local team participates in HIV Workshop

On December 22^nd, 9 members of the CFDP Board of Directors in Kumba, Cameroon came together to participate in a day-long training workshop. Mr. Eugene Atabong Atem, whose title is National Expert on HIV Mainstreaming in the South West Region for the German Development Service (DED) in Cameroon, held a day-long workshop on HIV Mainstreaming. The focus was two-fold: incorporating HIV education, prevention, and awareness strategies into the activities of CFDP and creating a one-year plan of action to identify goals and measure achievement.

The team measured the workshop a great success!

"Working closely with Eugene, a local expert on such an important topic as HIV/AIDS in Cameroon, really created for a beneficial exchange of knowledge and will open doors for CFDP" said one board member, Diba Dickson.
CFDP will work closely with Eugene and DED over the next year to mainstream HIV education and prevention activities into our regular soccer sessions. Consider this continuing-education in a professional development capacity.

A Holiday Gift from Washington, DC: Youth gives time and resources for Cameroon

Skyler Weisskopf is a senior at The School Without Walls Senior High School in Washington, DC. He began playing soccer at the age of four years. As a youth he played for a traveling soccer club and continued his career throughout his high school years. He will tell you "Soccer has made me the person I am today".

Upon the start of his senior year, like many of his peers, Skyler was tasked to complete a "Senior Project". While many high school seniors would see this as another mind-numbing hurdle in the race to graduate, Skyler found it was a great opportunity to help under-privileged soccer players far from his home. So he began to collect soccer gear.

In a few short months, he had accomplished his goal! Thanks to his fellow students at The School Without Walls Senior High School and players from the Stoddert Soccer League of DC, Skyler was successful in collecting 62 jerseys (mostly team sets), 56 shorts (team set), 53 pair of socks (team set), 10 sets of shin-guards, 12 soccer shoes, and 12 brand new soccer balls.

Skyler's report will focus on stressing the importance of soccer in conflict resolution and building community: the power of the game to deter kids from engaging in delinquent activities in their neighborhoods and keep them in school. He found activities of CFDP to in sync with his view of the game.

Upon graduation, Skyler intends to study International Relations at the University of Vermont. He wants to pursue a career in diplomacy, as he has always found much interest in other parts of the world.
On behalf of the youth in Kumba and the local leaders of CFDP, we wish to extend a great "Thank you" to all who made this possible – especially you, Skyler! All of this equipment will be transported to Cameroon THIS SUMMER and included in our activities to reward outstanding young players and institutions that work with CFDP in our mission to empower youth and provide them skills to achieve great success.

Window to CFDP in Kumba

Check out our first video post on YouTube! Subscribe to our Channel (CameroonFDP)!

This video was taken during the 201o CFDP Kick off in Kumba - July 26th to August 4th. The Kick off consisted of three days of training for our local Board of Directors (Leaders) and three days of camps for youth ages 12 to 22. After the camps, CFDP leaders played friendly matches against local clubs. The Kumba community embraced us and we look forward to building a great relationship with them as we plant our roots in the soil. Kumba is home.

Quick Update!

CFDP had a great week with a lot of things going on 'behind the scenes'.

The after school sessions are on haitus until school resumes after the holiday break. We are actively planning for a holiday camp to take place in a suburb of Kumba during the next few weeks.

Ngwane Peter has proposed to bring CFDP after school sessions to his community in Nkambe where he is a literature teacher at a government technical high school. Two young adults in the community have VOLUNTEERED their services to help run the sessions. Proposed start-up date in January after holidays!

A good friend of ours, Mr. Atem Eugene, will hold a day-long workshop on HIV Mainstreaming - incorporating education/prevention/awareness tactics into the activities of CFDP. The workshop will take place in Kumba and is tentatively scheduled for December 22nd. Eugene is the National Expert on HIV Mainstreaming in the South West Region for the German Development Service (DED) in Cameroon. He also is the founder and director of Youth Alliance for Democracy and Development (YADD). "Like them on Facebook"

Here is the US, we have been busy sorting through and editing all of the wonderful video footage we got this summer during the Kick-off activities. Here is something for starters:

Cameroon Football Development Program - Video on Facebook Page...YouTube Channel coming SOON with the good stuff!!

And lastly, we are excited to report that two Americans have made it their mission to collect soccer equipment for those less-proveledged youth in Cameroon!! Emily, a 12 year-old girl from Pittsburgh, has taken this project on as part of her Bat Mitzvah and Skyler, a 17 year-old boy from Washington, D.C. has reached out to his local soccer community as part of his High School Senior Project. More on their stories later...

Pictures From Last Week's Session at Kosala

Ashu engages youth in a discussion about Success and Healthy Relationships during an after-school session last Wednesday at Kosala.

Nenne juggles with some young girls during the soccer drills portion of the program. While she is well-equipped with boots and soccer gear - donated by friends here in the US - many of the youth play with sandals or barefoot.
Youth practice dribbling while Ashu and Caroline take time to answer questions from one of the participants.

December, You Are Welcome!

Youth in Barombi Mbo - suburb on the lake - outside of Kumba, 2008.

Things got off to a good start in December with another after-school session in Kosala!!

Peter, the Coordinator and Co-Founder of CFDP, is back in Kumba for the weekend. The team will sit and discuss plans for an upcomming holiday camp in a rural community outside of Kumba - very similar to the day-long Mambanda camp held in August.

Something I learned this summer: the term village is no longer "politically correct"...at least in some instances...in Cameroon, these small communities are now referred to as suburbs!

Report on the 2nd Camp held at Nkamlikum: 24 November 2010

The camp started at exactly 3:30pm, even though the board members were present as early as 2:30pm.The one hour delay was due to the late arrival of the concerned youths and also the participation of some in their inter-class competitions.

Present at the institution were the serious and dedicated members that have always been there since we began working with these schools: Brian, Dickson, Nenne, Wallace, Caroline and Ashu. Since we were to work with the same youths we did during the first session, there was no need for us to do any form of registration again. All we did was carry out a roll call of those present, and amongst the sixty seven(67) present last time, seventeen(17) were absent. We also recorded five(5) new youths, making the total number present to fifty five(55).Among those present, twenty nine(29) were boys and twenty six(26)girls and the average age was fifteen(15).

As per the proposal of the US coordinator and with the accord of the board members, we introduced a new topic on "Success" before moving to the warm ups. During this brief discussion which was headed by myself (Brian), Nenne and Ashu in three different groups, we began by trying to find from the youths their definition of success, who they considered successful and why? Many defined or understood success to be the accumulation wealth or living in affluence. They also sited the famous Cameroonian footballer, Samuel Eto'o and some other wealthy individuals in our society as examples of successful individuals. We then made them to understand that success is being the best person that you can be, that you must work hard in order to be considered successful and this usually starts with setting up genuine goals in their daily lives and striving to achieve them. We also made them to understand that as humans, we are all bound to make mistakes and the most important to them should be their ability to learn from these errors and strive to correct them in the future.

After this, we moved on to the warm ups, which comprised light jogging and stretching. From there we moved straight to the football drills, which was made up of the following: juggling of the ball, the red-light, green light dribbling exercise and lastly the inside drag. Here, their application was a little bit slow, even though a few number of them excelled in this exercise, especially the boys.

The session ended with the discussion on the topic "Healthy Relationships". Many of them understood the term relationship to be that of boy-girl or love relationship. We thus had the task to explain to them what a healthy relationship was all the about; it must not always be a love relationship. They understood that it can be the same sex relationship or opposite sex. We pointed out to them that what matters most to define a healthy relationship should be mutual respect and concern for each other as humans, the ability to respect another's wishes, and most importantly that sex is not a parameter to define a relationship. Here it should be noted that the youths actively participated in this discussions. They had so many questions and doubts and we did our best to clarify them. Also worth noting is that Nenne, Caroline, and Dickson took over the command at this stage, while the others assisted them. I will also like to note the active participation of the sports master of this institution. He aided in the drills so much, for he is a trained sports instructor with more than three years experience in the field. More to this, he told us that he finds our package very rich and resourceful to the youths.

We shall continue with activities at Kosala next Wednesday.

Cheers,

Aminkeng Brian

Project Manager of After School Sessions, Cameroon Football Development Program

Mother-baby HIV box to help halt transmission

It's no great medical breakthrough, just a simple colour-coded box packed with HIV drugs and pictures, but its backers UNICEF hope it may help finally end transmission of the often deadly virus to babies.

The mother-baby pack, dubbed "innovation for an HIV-free generation" will be distributed to 30,000 pregnant women in Kenya, Cameroon, Lesotho and Zambia starting from this month.

It contains all the medicines and instructions needed to protect an HIV-infected mother and her newborn, even if she never visits a health clinic again until after the baby is born, and even if she can't read properly.

"We don't need any scientific breakthroughs or new technology to tackle this problem," said Jimmy Kolker, head of HIV and AIDS at the United Nations children's fund (UNICEF). "What we need is a way to empower women to take charge of their own care."

Evidence in developed countries, where there is now virtually no transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS from mothers to their babies, shows that, as Kolker says, all the medicines and healthcare knowledge are already there to halt it worldwide.

It is the logistics of getting the right drugs to the right people at the right time that is proving the biggest barrier in poorer countries to eliminating mother-to-child HIV transmission - a goal the United Nations has said it wants to reach by 2015.

"In the developed world, there are now very few babies born HIV positive, but in Africa there are still over 1,000 born every day," Kolker told Reuters in an interview.

More than 50 percent of HIV-positive women in sub-Saharan Africa in 2008 did not get the drugs they needed to prevent transmission of the virus to their children, according to data from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

The World Health Organisation says an estimated 430,000 children were newly infected with HIV in 2008, the vast majority of them through mother-to-child transmission. Yet this kind of spread of the disease is almost entirely preventable where the right services are available.

Children born with HIV face lifelong disease and, if they're lucky, lifelong medication. In Africa at least half of them will live beyond their second birthdays without medical intervention.

"We're still missing a lot of mothers because they don't come back to the clinics, or because the clinics are short of drug supplies, or because the mothers don't take the drugs when they're supposed to," said Kolker.

At around $70 per box, the mother-baby pack costs less than half of what it would take to give even a year of drug treatment to an HIV positive baby, UNICEF says.

"It's cost-effective from every point of view," said Kolker. "It's something that can be done at a village level and followed up by a community health worker or mothers group. It doesn't need a nurse or doctor to follow through."

The idea is also that the pack will simplify the procurement, ordering and distribution of drugs and healthcare since it is a one-stop-shop, with a complete course of medicines and instructions to halt mother-to-child HIV transmission.

The pack is divided into three sections of blue for drugs to be taken during pregnancy, yellow for medicines needed during labour and delivery and pink for drugs needed for mother and baby after delivery.

The colour-coding and a series of simple pictures are designed to help women with low levels of literacy understand when and in what doses to take the medicines.

UNICEF's $8.0 million pilot project in the first four countries is planned in three phases, with around 30,000 packs to be distributed in each phase to reach almost 100,000 women by the middle of 2011.

If it proves successful, Kolker said UNICEF plans to scale the project up in these countries and widen it to include more.

"We don't want to do this without being really sure that it works," he said. "But one of the things that is most promising about this project is that there are already a number of countries who want to be next in line."

Reuters

Self-Assessment for Growth

Youth stand with CFDP Leaders after the first session at GSS Nkalikum

Emails from Kumba continue to prove the dedication of local individuals on the ground – making this happen…

16 November 2010

K-man – These are the pictures of the camps held at Nkamlikum and GBHS Kosala. I want to inform you that the session of tomorrow will not take place because of the public holidays here. Late this evening, it was announced over the national radio that tomorrow is a public holiday because of feast of Ramadan. So no schools or work throughout the national territory.

…

18 November 2010

Hi K-man,

Once again it is nice reading from you about all the efforts you are putting over that way, to see that CFDP becomes a success tomorrow. Know that each time you send an email I make sure we share the contents with every board member and they have all been appreciative and thankful of what you have been doing.

Since we had no session yesterday, we decided to hold an evaluation meeting. It was to evaluate our last two sessions, our performances, some shortcomings and what we can improve upon. So far, the meeting went well and we were able to identify some shortcomings on our part and pledged to work harder, for the success of CFDP back here lies on our shoulders. Nenne will get the full minutes ready for you when she develops them. Bye man.

Brian.

Rain no go disturb CFDP!

Emails like this one below are what it's all about. Again, this one comes from Brian – unedited – in response to a lesson entitled "Success" which I passed along from a good friend, Tony Everett, founder of PureGame. PureGame is a Los Angeles – based soccer program focused on empowering urban youth by combining character development and community building with a unique approach to the game. We hope to see something like this in Pittsburgh in the future! But for now…Cameroon - o

 

Greetings K-man,i think your suggestions are ok.I find it interesting, very educative to the youths and i believe they will like it.Unfortunately we were not able to hold our weekly meetings as usual yesterday because of the heavy downpour.We will try as much as possible to hold it today if the weather gives us green light.It rained for close to 5hours yesterday,as from 2pm Cameroon time to 6:30pm.

Have already printed and photocopied the new suggestion into eight (08)copies so that each member should be able to have a copy when next we meet and master it,before our next session at Nkamlikum.Just to add that since our last session at Nkamlikum,many students have met me on the way and each time they want to know when we will be coming back to their school.Each time i hear this from them,i feel happy to know that we are already making an impact.

Brian

Week 2 After-School Session Continues Early Success

Below you find another detailed report from the second afterschool session of CFDP. The sessions were organized, designed, and implemented by the CFDP Team in Cameroon. The information below is provided by the After-school Project Manager, Aminkeng Brian. This report comes to you in his own words; his reaction to the activities of CFDP as they happened before his own eyes.

This is the report on the camp that took place on Wednesday Nov 10, 2010 at Government Bilingual High School Kosala:

We got started at precisely 3:30pm Cameroon Time (6 hours ahead EST). We arrived at the venue a bit late due to poor weather and slippery nature of the road leading to the institution.

CFDP Leaders present were Aminkeng Brian, Diba Dickson, Ngoe Wallace, Akom Caroline, Myango Mukoi Nenne, and Ashu.

Number of Youth Present was 11 girls, 40 boys; 51 total

Warm-up: The jogging exercise lasted for about 10 minutes and during this exercise divided into two groups. We emphasized to youths the importance of warm-ups to a footballer before entering a pitch (to avoid cramps and relax the muscles). After that we moved straight to our traditional ice breaking.

To the football drills: Here contrary to our last week session at Nkamlikum, we increased the number of drills because of their technical knowhow and application to it. Here we discovered that most of the youths, especially the boys could do these exercises freely, but when it came to the girls they had difficulties. Also during the short passes, we emphasized to them the necessity to be focused when giving a pass to your partner. Here we likened the situation to their lives; they have to be focused and not hurry in whatever they do, for it is necessary to be composed in life.

The juggling of the ball was the initiative of the sports teacher, who emphasized that a good footballer must always know how juggle the ball. The exercises lasted for close to 50 minutes and then it was time for the discussion.

During the discussion, which we did while seated, we talked on adolescence. The youths were divided into three groups, with two CFDP Leaders per group. Dickson, Nenne, and Caroline led the discussions, while the rest where supporting. Questions were asked on what they understood by adolescence, the age limit and characteristics. Many of them supplied interesting answers and when we started discussing in detail with them about the topic. It aroused their attention so much. They found the topic so interesting so much that at the end of the session, they were still asking questions

Comments (abridged):

It should be noted that the poor turn out was due to the fact that most of the youths were involved in their inter-class competitions in football, handball and volleyball. Thus making it difficult for us to have a good number of the students, since both boys and girls were busy cheering their respective teams. Notwithstanding, we still had the attention of the present fifty one students.

Their general participation was really encouraging and a form of morale booster for us to continue working with them in the future.

Play-by-Play from the First CFDP After-School Session in Cameroon

Again – Straight Outta Cameroon – This email was sent earlier this week from The Main Man, Aminkeng Brian:

Sorry about the delayance in getting the report across to you. It is because of the electricity and internet failure. All the same…

This is the report on the camp that took place on Wednesday Nov 03 2010 at Government Secondary School Nkamlikum.

Start time: 2:30pm Cameroon Time (6 hours ahead EST)

No. CFDP Leaders: Six

Youth: 40 girls; 27 boys

Ages: 12 to 17, average age being 16

Warm-up: Immediately after the registration, we did the normal jogging and then later on went straight to the ice breaking exercise. This was very fast because the students already knew themselves.

Topic: As decided during our last board meeting,we elaborated so much on Adolescence,not failing to talk briefly on healthy relationship.Promising to come back to the healthy relationship topic when next we meet them again.

Football Drills: Later on we began with the passing of the ball and we made sure we emphasised on them to try as much as possible to to make their passes precise and short. Then we moved on to the controlling or dribbling of the ball between the cones, asking them to use both legs. And later on we ended with chest control of the ball. These exercises were mostly coordinated with by Brian, Wallace and Richard, while Dickson, Caroline and Nenne were busy preparing for the discussions.

Comments (abridged):

At the begining,the youths had difficulties grasping the football drills,but after insistence and further demonstration on our part,the guys picked up pretty well.As for the girls,they had difficulties in grasping or easily doing the exercise. In a nutshell,the general participation of the youths during the discussions and through out the camp was very encouraging.

I will like to point out that all these would not have have been possible without the collaboration and support of the sports master of the institution Mr Penda, who made sure that before our arrival he had published a list of the students for the session on the school notice board. This week we will be moving over to Government Bilingual High School Kosala and we intend on repeating the same exercise we did at GSS Nkamlikum there, with the collaboration of the sports master Mr. Mbianke.

Email Straight Outta Africa!

The following email was sent by on November 4^th, the day after the first CFDP after-school session was held at Government Secondary School Nkamlikum in Kumba (our home base). Cameroon Coordinator, Mr. Ngwane Peter is a literature teacher for a government school in Nkambe, Cameroon. Nkambe is located in the Northwest Region, a few hours' drive from Kumba (located in the Southwest Region). The two are the only English-speaking regions in the Francophone-dominated country. His frustrations with the internet derive from the unfinished emails which preceded this one, undoubtedly the result of power and/or electricity outages. Anyone over there will tell you simply – "That's Africa." K-Man, short for "Kumba Man", is a nickname I picked up in 2006, my second year in Cameroon. Sure beats "white man" which many children (and even some adults) shout at Westerns as they pass! More information to follow… Aminkeng Brian, who is overseeing operations in Peter's absence, is preparing a detailed report of the occasion. He was previously unemployed.

4 Nov. 2010

Dear K MAN

You can't just understand how frustrating it is to use the net here in Nkambe. I wrote to inform you that the weekly session have commence successfully and the turn out is so amazing. Actually I read through you mail and I just want to let you know that all the recommendations you made concerning the topics and the football drills have already been taken into consideration.

The first topic that was treated yesterday was Adolescence and the participation was good as I got reports from Kumba.

Please do all to get to me preferably over the phone and I will really want you to make sure you send money to the guys in Kumba so that all can go well.

I am looking forward to hear from you and Best of Luck. Missing you so much. Peace

With Love Peter

FYI – Money was sent.

Cameroon hopes Brazil project will boost cocoa output

Cameroon plans to use genetically modified seedlings developed in Brazil in an effort to more than double its cocoa production by 2015, according to the central African nation's cocoa development body SODECAO.

The world's fifth-largest supplier of the main ingredient in chocolate officially produced just under 200,000 tonnes during the 2009-10 season which ended in July, down from 205,000 tonnes in the previous season.
"I foresee a very bright future for the cocoa sub-sector in Cameroon given people's renewed interest, increasing support from the government and high prices on the world market," SODECAO General Manager Jerome Mvondo told a press conference.

"And with Biofabrica, l believe we can raise production to about 400,000-500,000 tonnes by 2015."

Cameroon will cultivate 20 million disease-resistant, high-yield "Biofabrica" seedlings during the 2010-11 season as part of a $10 million project with the Brazilian state, which developed the variety in the 1990s to combat an outbreak of a fungal disease called Witch's Broom that had halved the crop.

An official with Brazil's executive commission for cocoa, Ceplac, told Cameroon state radio over the weekend the variety takes two to three years to start producing, yields 1-2 tonnes per hectare, and is disease resistant.

Yields in Cameroon currently average 200-300 kg per hectare.

Cameroon is also increasing its use of locally-developed genetically modified cocoa strands, Mvondo said.

The world's No. 1 and No. 2 producers, Ivory Coast and Ghana, have also said they are hoping to raise cocoa production in the coming years.

The West Coast of Africa accounts for about two-thirds of world cocoa production, and disappointing output last year helped drive world cocoa prices to 30-year highs.

Reuters

Madjid Bougherra tips Samuel Eto’o to win African Footballer of the Year

Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra has thrown his support behind Inter forward Samuel Eto'o to win the 2010 Glo/CAF African Player of the Year award.

Speaking to Algerian sports daily le Buteur on Tuesday, the Algerian said Cameroon striker Eto'o deserved to be named the African Player of the Year considering his performance with Inter last year.

"We must be objective and recognize that the Cameroonian striker Eto'o is the one who deserves the 2010 title, considering his performance with Inter Milan last season, winning a treble and a Uefa Champions League. He's the best I must confess and I strongly support his nomination," Bougherra said.

The Glo/CAF African Player of the Year will be announced in November.

Shout Out to Equipment Providers in 2010

Last year we got lots of donations of soccer equipment from friends, families, universities, high schoolers, and even strangers!! So heres a great big thanks from CFDP!

We packed up at least 5 suitcases full of balls, soccer shoes, jerseys, and Adidas t-shirts. This year - we aim to fill up a container!!

Equipment is NOT GIVEN to any individual or team. Equipment is EARNED.

This year, youth earned t-shirts simply by attending the soccer camps.

Our Board of Directors/ Leaders earned jerseys and soccer shoes after completing training sessions and successfully implementing the youth camps.

Partner schools earned soccer balls, a token of appreciation for hosting us during our training and youth camps.

A THANK YOU IS IN ORDER...

Thank you Eurosport PASSBACK Program!

Thank you Pittsburgh Riverhounds!

Thank you Seton Hill University!

Thank you Wheeling Jesuit University!

Thank you Wheeling Park High Schools Girls Soccer!

Thank you Smith Family in VA!

Thank you to all Friends of CFDP who made the 2010 Kick off possible with an equipment donation!!

See you out there next year!

Interested in donating used equipment this year? Contact cameroonfdp@gmail.com

CFDP Article Featured in Flyer News

The weekly campus news paper at the University of Dayton recently featured an article about CFDP!!

Check out the story in the online Flyer News!!

Click HERE! Flyer News

Planning for 2011 Summer Expo: We need Soccer Equipment!

We have started planning for next summer! While things move forward on the ground in Cameroon, we are busy here in the US looking forward for the future of CFDP. We have budgeted for two months of activities in Summer 2011 to include organization-building, management and leadership training, workshops for existing and new leaders, and another round of summer holiday soccer camps for youth. We are excited to build upon our fantastic start in 2010.

We need your help! We are interested in collecting TEAM SETS OF USED SOCCER JERSEYS for the 2011 Summer Expo. The jerseys are a vital incentive and reward for communities who are implementing CFDP sessions. They motivate the individual players and instill confidence in them as members of their team.

Additionally, we are looking for new or gently used:

• Soccer Balls
  
• Soccer Shoes


• Shin guards


• Socks


• Professional or Local Club Jerseys


• Goalkeeper jersey and gloves
  

We have some great ideas to make the most of this equipment…more details to come on how we plan to use this!

In 2010, we carried a few suitcases stuffed with equipment...This year we want to fill up an entire shipping container!

Weekly Sessions to Begin in November

We have partnered with two schools. Over 200 youth will be involved. Our mission: create an empowering environment where students engage in discussions with their peers. It is community building. The same leaders who participated in the training sessions and implemented the summer camps will continue to prove their dedication to CFDP by building relationships with the youth during these weekly after-school sessions. We will continue to combine lessons on life skills and health topics with soccer drills and games. Weekly sessions will begin the first week in November and run for six weeks until the Christmas holiday break.

 
 

WOW! SORRY FOR LONG SILENCE!

PLEASE EXCUSE THE LONG SILENCE SINCE OUR LAST POST!!

WELCOME TO OUR NEW BLOG!

WE WILL STRIVE TO DO A BETTER JOB KEEPING UP WITH ALL THINGS CAMEROON AND FOOTBALL AND DEVELOPMENT, RELATED TO OUR PROGRAM.

CHEERS!


First Things First...Content From Our October Newsletter...

UMOJA African Arts in the Park

For two beautiful sunny days in August, Allegheny Commons Park on the North Side of Pittsburgh was alive with the sights and sounds of Africa. People came from across the city and region to eat fresh foods and become immersed in the culture through the arts and musical performances that represent the beautiful people of Africa. UMOJA African Arts Company hosted the event for the 6th year in a row. Vendors from the area -extending southeast to Washington, D.C. and north to Cleveland - exhibited fine art, jewlery, dresses, and food for all who attended. Cameroon Football Development Program held down an information tent with many other local non-profits. It was a great opportunity to meet people in the community who are interested in what we do. Many residents of the North Side expressed their interest to get their children involved in soccer - something fresh and different. While we are dedicated to implementing the youth soccer camps in Cameroon right now... there is much potential for future growth in the local community!

Some pictures from the days' events...

Vendors sell African dresses, bags, jewlery, wooden sculptures, drums, and other pieces of art under the cool shade of a tree. Many, if not all, of the goods come directly from one of 54 nations (or 46, depending who you ask).

Sister Bea leads a group of festival-goers in a traditional African Dance. She is lead by the beat of drums given by Master Drummer and Dancer Aboubaca Camara (Oscar) and friends of the Guinea West African Drum and Dance Ensemble.


Wooden masks and sculptures in the sun.

Stilt Walker from the Ivory Coast makes his rounds during both afternoons of the festival. He danced quite well!

We made many friends this year...We hope to see you there in 2011!

2010 Program Kick Off in Kumba

Cameroon Football Development Program Leaders Pave the Way

Program Leaders stand before the gate at Government Technical High School - Kumba. Many of them have been around since Day 1, when we began to reach out to the Kumba community to determine if the need /want for a program like this existed (March 2010). Their dedication is evident through their actions. Together we are building the foundation for a sustainable program in Cameroon.

We All Teach. We All Learn.

Leaders engage in discussions during a morning training session in a Government Technical High School classroom. At this time we worked to develop a method to create an interactive learning atmosphere to present health and social topics to youth. No lectures! No adult/child relationship! With the right approach, leaders break down many barriers on the football pitch which allow for free-flow of ideas and exchange of knowledge.

'CFDP Dey Done Come-o'

Leaders practice football drills which they will later implement in the youth camps. It is important to incorporate football skills into the curriculum of the program to challenge the youth both physically and mentally. When they succeed in mastering the basics of football, they build self confidence which can carry over on the pitch and in other parts of their life.

During the training sessions, we began a chant/song that will hopefully carry on as long as the Cameroon Football Development Program lives...

"CFDP dey done come-o

Man wey de sleep,

Make he wake up!"

Translation (Pidgin to English): CFDP has arrived. Anyone who is sleeping should wake up to see!

Dedication: No Matter Rain or Shine

CFDP Cameroon Coordinator, Ngwane Peter (center) stretches out the team to finish up an afternoon training session on the pitch. It rained that afternoon - hard. August is considered the 'heart' of the Rainy Season, though we saw much sunshine during the two-week Kick Off.

Meeting of Minds

Program Leaders sit together one afternoon to discuss logistics for running youth camps. Checklist: food for all participants, warm-up drills, schedule for discussion topics, football drills, surveys for collecting data, clean water...Good to go!

Brian Leads Morning Football Drills

Youth learn the importance of ball control with a series of dribbling exercises. Leaders encourage them to practice with their 'weak' foot, something many of them are not used to doing. Over 100 youth attend camps over three days. They each receive a t-shirt donated by the Passback Program (University of Oregon World Cup 2009 and 2010). They will surely never forget this experience.

More Football Drills

Here, youth dribble in and out of cones while trying to maintain control of the ball.

Ashu Leads a Group Discussion

Each day youth were separated into groups based on age. This allowed leaders to adjust the presentation of their topic to facilitate appropriate discussion. For example, groups of older youth who were sexually active (We know, we asked!) were engaged in discussion on limiting number of partners, condom use everytime, and getting tested for HIV. Groups of younger youth were encouraged to abstain from sexual activity until they were more responsible and mature (physically and mentally).

Afternoon Friendly Match with Peers

Here, youth play small -sided games after lunch. Leaders acted as coaches and referees during this part of the camps. In addition to having fun, youth are encouraged to implement skills they learned earlier in the day during match play.

Safe Return to US

We done reach! After just two glorious weeks in Cameroon we have returned to the US...Back in the 'Burgh! The trip was a great success with all of the main objectives being realized. Training sessions for the 12 program leaders were completed in the first week in Kumba. During the second week, the group comprised of ten men and two women planned and implemented three day-long youth camps, building on their ability to run football drills and lead discussion on the health and social topics. On Saturday evening, we all gathered for a Farewell Gala. Over the next few months, we will partner with six local secondary schools to continue to refine and develop this interactive education/football model. Weekly educational football sessions will allow each of the board members to understand the most effective presentation model for future use. While we are working to improve our own skills, the youth will benefit the most!!

Three Days of Football Camps Build Foundation

Three days of football camps concluded on Wednesday. WOW. We had between 35 and 40 local youth attend each day. Different groups of youth represented the various quarters in Kumba and nearby villages. Monday and Tuesday's camps were held at St. Francis College. The last day we rounded up at G.T.H.S. The youth ranged in age from 12 to 24. All of the youth completed surveys before and after the camps. Needless to say, we learned a lot about how the program can grow from here. It is amazing to see how the Kumba community is receiving the program. It is very difficult to sum in words what has transpired in the past 3 days. Some examples of the feedback we are getting...

One teacher from Diligent Bilingual Secondary School commented he was very impressed that the youth from his class were so engaged in the discussions. He noticed a difference in the way they interacted the next few days at school. He is very interested in the program and wants to see it continue at his school on a regular basis.

One 24 year old who attended the camp said he learned so many things that he had never known about HIV.

One 16 year old said he took some advice he gained from the discussion with his peers about healthy relationships and communication with parents and approached his father about their strained relationship. He believes it will improve.

One proprietor of a school requested we run the program there. In addition to reaching out to the youth, she explained their need for a team set of football jerseys.

In interviews after the camps, many youth were able to quickly relay the information they learned and expressed their love for the combination of football and education.

We met with the former Provencial Delegate of Youth and Sports for the Southwest in Cameroon. He was impressed with our progress and looks forward to promoting education and football development to young Cameroonians with our program. He is well connected in the national football community.

For now...we head to Barombi village to see old friends and the water supply system built by the local community in 2008 and designed and funded by six University of Dayton ETHOS Students.

Saturday we will have a meeting with the program leaders to plan for the next few months. We will implement our program with weekly sessions in secondary schools. Before September we will move to one village outside of Kumba, Mambanda, and run one or two days of football camps similar to ones we ran this week. The purpose will not only be to disseminate information as we have done thus far, but to collect much needed data related to sexual activity, condom use, and awareness of STDs and HIV AIDS in rural communities.

A detailed report of the progress we are making in Cameroon now will follow later in August and the blog will continue to be updated once we return to the US.

The wheels are turning...

Youth Camp - Day 1

Youth camp participants and CFDP directors stand before a banner on the pitch at St. Francis College. All of the youth received t-shirts donated by the University of Oregon via the Passback Program (Thank you!).

CFDP program director, Richard (left), Lambda Warriors manager (middle) and owner (right). We played a friendly match against the Fiango-based club after the first youth camp.

CFDP identified top players at the camp and rewarded them with jerseys, shin guards, and a small ball for juggling.

Day 1 of the youth camps moved very well. After a late start (African Time), we got right into things as we had practiced the previous week. Two program leaders started the youth off with warm-ups which including jogging with local chants and songs, stretching, and some icebreakers to allow the youth to get to know one another. We split the 36 participants into two groups to encourage active participation in the discussion of the health and social topics. The program leaders paired up to present 6 topics throughout the day. Each topic was presented to each group, so the directors had the opportunity to lead discussions twice. The youth actively participated, asking and answering questions. At the end of the day, many of the program leaders commented on how important it was that the youth actively participated. The exchange of ideas allowed for a thorough exploration of the topics. Many of the youth commented how they learned a lot while still having fun.

The camp ran from 10am until 4pm, with a break for lunch: rice and fresh fish stew. After the camp, CFDP board members played a friendly match against a local club team, the Lambda Warriors. They are based in Fiango, which is the section of Kumba where St. Francis College is located. We lost to them 3-1, They played very well together, mounting a strong attacking force.

We presented them a small gift so they could have some refreshments after the game. Then all CFPD board members met to conduct an evaluation of the days activities. We focused on things we could do better the next day. We left the pitch tired but excited for the next day.

Weekend

The weekend was filled with great fun. So much to write about, combined with very little internet time due to a busy schedule and internet and power outages, requires brevity.

Saturday morning we moved to Ocean City Radio Station where we were interviewed about CFDP. The radio show hosts were very interested in the program, as one of them visited us during our training sessions, and we discussed the start up and future of the program.

Afterwards we moved to St. Francis College and secured the pitch for our youth football camps the following Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. We expect about 100 youth over the three days of camps. While the pitch we were supposed to have was only cut halfway (the guy with the lawnmower disappered with his advance of 20.000 fcfa), the principal approved of our using the pitch at the front of the school.

A wedding in the afternoon followed with a great feast at the reception.

Sunday we met with the board of directors in preparation for the youth camps. We also attended a party at Dr. Julius Amin's house. He built something like a palace over the past 10 years. There were many high profile attendees, including the Government Delegate of Kumba, members of the urban council, and prominent doctors and leaders in the community. At his request, I had the opportunity to speak about CFDP and many people were excited to hear about the program. Kumba can never forget the University of Dayton!

Training Sessions a Success

We held two training sessions for the board of directors/ program leaders last week. The purpose was to create a standard format for presenting health and social topics in a positive environment. Government Technical High School (G.T.H.S) Kumba were gracious enough to offer their facilities to us which allowed for a classroom for technical training and a football pitch (soccer field) for practical implementation. We focused on two main objectives: a football camp format and a topic presentation format. The idea is to create a relaxed atmosphere where the youth and leader get to know one another, become comfortable, and have a free exchange of information on health and social topics in the form of discussions as opposed to lectures.

12 young adults in Kumba composed the team of program leaders and they were very receptive to the training. I can see their passion for the objectives of this program.

After a few icebreakers to get things started, we went over the two formats and got started reviewing key information about each of the topics. Then we split into small groups to strategize an approach to present the health and social topics. Each group have several presentations on some of the different topics which led to further discussion of the topics and implementation strategies. The format we have selected for engaging the youth in the topics is as follows:

1. State the Topic and why it is important

2. Ask questions to learn what the youth may know or think they know about the topic. Begin the Discussion.

3. Present key information about the topic.

4. Use an activitiy like role play or true/false to provide a practical viewpoint

5. Ask the youth how the topic applies the them in their every day life - when they go home

6. End of Day: "What did we learn today?"

We have targeted youth from the age of 12 to 18 for now. Topics include, but not limited to: adolescence, healty relationships, communication with parents, HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, condom negotiation, teenage pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and violence against women.

After a successful morning session, we moved to the pitch and practiced the football format we discussed earlier. This includes: jogging, stretching, warmups, ball skills, football drills, and match play. We implement the discussions of topics within a training session. Interacting with the youth, encouraging them to feel free during the discussions, and mastering the football drills are some of the main goals for the program leaders.

These training sessions took place for the better parts of Thursday and Friday of last week. After training, we moved to the Cameroon coordinator's house to share a meal together. It was a tiring two days, but we all looked forward to implementing what we learned during the youth camps the following week.

We De Land Africa - Bushfallers

Translation: We have landed in Cameroon. Bushfaller is a term for any foreigner who visits Cameroon (and possibly anywhere in Africa) or a natural born who has gone to Europe or US and come back after sometime...I consider myself the latter. HA!

We made it safely! After a long layover in Paris, we took off for Douala and arrived around 7pm Tuesday. We ate some fufu and arrow and slept at the Saffana Hotel. THe next day, traveling through Douala was difficult. We sat in traffic for about 2 hours - a delay caused by a bridge closure. A 12-inch diameter waterline burst right in the middle of the main bridge crossing the Wouri River which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. I know this because I saw the old section of pipe on the road as we passed. Luckily, the paving restoration was almost complete. It was created a great disturbance in the flow of traffic through the most populous city in Cameroon.

Once we arrived at the moto park, something like a bus station, we hopped on a bus piled high with our luggage and some other goods including a dining room table and chairs and were off to Kumba. Along the road we were stopped by police who kept one small girl when she could not produce her school ID. After some arguments and shouting, we were on our way and arrived in Kumba by 3pm. The road from Douala to Kumba was recently paved. 2006 travel time was 5+ hours. 2010 time (less police stop) was about 2 hours. The roads have not changed in Kumba, however.

We immediately went to the pitch where many of the board of directors were anxiously awaiting our arrival. We got started by discussing the format for the football part of the sessions and then played a small match. Afterwards, we moved to the Cameroon coordinators house (no apostrophe on this keyboard) where we shared a wonderful meal together of corn fufu (starch base), ndole (wonderful vegetable), doudou (fried plantains), boiled plantains, and catfish in tomoato sauce (bomb). After we discussed a bit about the future of the program, touching on the training sessions, youth camps, and the months to follow. I can see the board of directors are dedicated to the mission of CFDP and will be the backbone of a successful program.

Some Pictures from Past years...

Football Pitch, Barombi Village, 2008 - Perhaps the unofficial Start of the Cameroon Football Development Program. All young men in the Barombi village were equipped with donated soccer shoes from the US - more than 35 in all. The village also received a team set of jerseys donated by Wheeling Central High School, Wheeling, West Virginia.

Mbo Barombi Village, 2008 - University of Dayton Students stand next to a public tap stand in the village at the Inauguration Ceremony for the water supply system they helped design, fundraise for, and build. They are dressed in traditional African dresses. The men wear stocking caps and neck ties particular to the Barombi Clan.

Lake Barombi 2008 - University of Dayton ETHOS Students and Barombi youth go for an afternoon swim in the lake. The students lived in the village for 2 months and worked with the local water management committee to build a gravity-fed water supply system.

Kumba, 2008 - CLICKS Organization stands together before a friendly match. CLICKS is a youth organization dedicated to improving the lives of the less fortunate. They volunteer their time helping at local orphanages and hospitals. They also sponsor the studies of some Kumba youth by providing them school fees, books, and school supplies.

Return to West Africa

Cameroon Football Development Program is a grassroots organization dedicated to improving the health of West African youth by encouraging community-building through soccer. We are currently in the start-up phase and have partnered with Soccer Dreams Without Borders, a registered non-profit 501(c)(3) organization based in Evergreen, Colorado. Our first initiative in Cameroon will be implementing training sessions for 15 program leaders and hosting three day-long youth soccer camps. The leaders have been working together since April 2010 to lay the ground-work in Kumba, Cameroon. The 2010 Program Kick-off will run from July 28 to August 8, 2010. An experienced cinematographer will be on the ground to document the 2010 Kick-off and tell this story to the world.

The summer camps will provide over 100 Cameroonian youth the opportunity to play soccer in a safe and structured environment. They will learn from young adults in the community about HIV/AIDS prevention and the life skills essential to promoting social development. Additional desired outcomes include instilling a sense of self-worth and accomplishment in youth to overcome the dismal atmosphere created by poverty, promoting hope for the future, and providing a platform for individual growth and community development. Donations of soccer balls from Seton Hill University, Wheeling Jesuit University, Pittsburgh Riverhounds, and many other individuals will be used during the Program Kick-off and for weekly educational soccer sessions to continue in the fall of 2010. Soccer shoes will be a vital incentive to encourage commitment from program leaders. Additionally, the United States Soccer Federation PASSBACK PROGRAM donated 140 youth t-shirts so everyone who attends the camps will receive something to remember the experience. We believe there is a great opportunity to create awareness of the ability to use soccer as a development tool in Africa and engage communities in the United States to act. Donated soccer equipment (balls, jerseys, shoes, and other playing and coaching materials) will be used as an incentive and reward for coaches and teachers who implement the educational soccer sessions. Documented proof will ensure program legitimacy and allow for evaluation and growth.