Back To Work!

CFDP was back in action this past week, resuming after-school sessions after a short interim for holiday activities. First it was Bilingualism Day and then Youth Day. Activities included many sports competitions and other festivals. One thing for sure: Cameroonians know how to celebrate! We really enjoy life - making the most of what we have.

CFDP continues to refine our operating model and develop "THE METHOD" as we have just recently started working with another school. Last summer, our local team was equipped with a handbook providing guidance for 12 sessions - each one including discussion topics and soccer drills. We are now working on a year-long curriculum to further our mission and create a sustainable foundation for lift-off during the 2011-2012 school year.

This latest report comes from Government Secondary School Nkamlikum and is provided by Brian.

At exactly 4pm, the session began, after we had done the role call of the students present. Of the total number of students we have been working with, forty five (45) were present. Among these forty five, thirty five were boys and ten girls. More to these, six leaders were present: Brian, Nenne, Caroline, Wallace, Kama and Ashu. Dickson, who has been acting as our camera man, was ill and so he could not be present, thus we had no other means of taking pictures since all our pictures are usually taken by his camera phone.

The program consisted of warm ups, headed by Kama, Wallace and Brian, as the youths were divided into three groups. After the warm ups, we moved straight to the first activity, which was the passing drill. We came back to this exercise because we wanted to find out if they could still master what they had learned from us after our last session. The exercise lasted for over 20 minutes and we took this long because many of them had forgotten how give precise passes. Thus much emphasis had to be laid again on this. We also added another passing exercise known as push pass.

From the passing drills, we moved to our topic discussion, “changes that boys and girls experience during puberty”. Here, many of them were a little bit shy or lukewarm to discuss these topics with us. But since it is our job to make the atmosphere conducive for them, we had to explain to them to feel free and that it was essential for them to know these things, to better understand their bodies. After this, their participation in this discussion was encouraging and very interesting. As usual, whenever they found themselves settled, they always asked interesting questions and felt free and relaxed.

After the discussions of these topics, the session ended at 5:30pm with the dribbling exercises. Here, the youths did dribbling between the cones, passing between the cones and the inside drag. Here, most of them excelled in them, especially the boys and all these were done with the collaboration of the sports teacher of the institution.

We will follow-up with the same activities next week at Kosala.

Meet the Pen Pals - Part II

So...you have met some of the Cameroonian youth who are participating in CFDP's Premier Pen Pal Program (See Blog Post Below). It's imoprtant to learn more about the players from FSS Salaberry - the soccer club in Montreal - who are partnering with these boys and girls for this fantastic cultural exchange.

The senior players representing FSS Salaberry will spend two weeks in July in Cameroon. They will stay in Kumba as their home base, play LOTS of soccer, travel to a few other cities and suburbs in the Southwest Region, and spend some quality time with their Pen Pals. Did we mention they have organized for an ENTIRE SHIPPING CONTAINER to be filled with donated soccer equipment ?!?! Contributions ranging from soccer balls to entire team sets of jerseys have been donated from people across the North American Continent - from Montreal to Washington, D.C. to Pittsburgh to Minneapolis!! But I digress...

Working closely with their WONDERFUL coach, we have been able to match the Pen Pals according to their interests.

For example, Isabelle (medical student in Montrael ) is connected to Kelda (see below :0).

Nadine (Montreal) and Tambe (Cameroon) have a few things in common besides soccer. For example,they are both African!! Nadine is half-Egyptian!!

Gaëlle (Montreal) and Janet (Cameroon) both love MUSIC!!! They will have no trouble enjoying the beautiful sounds of Makossa, of Cameroon, and Coupé Décalé, of Côte d'Ivoire.

The Pen Pals have been Introduced. The FSS players have written their first letters and the Cameroonian youth are forming their responses now!

Check Out These Skills!!!

In August 2010, CFDP hosted three days of youth camps in Kumba. Each day consisted of soccer drills, discussions on important life skills and health topics, free hot lunch, competitive soccer matches, and most importantly...FUN!!

We are planning for MORE SOCCER FESTIVALS this summer for YOUTH in KUMBA and in BUEA, the capital of the Southwest Region of Cameroon.

Check out some videos from last summer!!



AMAZING JUGGLING SKILLS


CRAZY BACK FLIPS...THIS GUY DOESN'T STOP!!!

Cameroonian Leader weighs in on uprising in Tunisia and Libya

The events in North Africa are a wakeup call for the entire continent. You have leaders who cling to power for long stretches of time while they do nothing good for the continent's children, you have a continent blessed with so much but having nothing at the table because everything is been looted by the West and now China follow suit, so you have hungry angry people whose only alternative will be to take to the streets. Our leaders should wake up and work for the people or make way for the young patriotic able citizens who can turn Africa in a success story. Africa should be a leading continent but not a following continent as is the case. You have a continent divided in Euro or Arab centric, Anglo or francophone, it's time for us to choose our true friends and develop our continent as one, stop begging Europe and China and perhaps look at models like South Africa, Brazil and India.

Chief Bisong Etahoben, Yaounde, Cameroon

Meet The PenPals - Part I

We are happy to introduce some of the 16 talented young people from Kumba, Cameroon who are participating in out Premier PenPal Program. They come from various neighborhoods all across Kumba. They range in age from 13 to 21 years. Each of them wants to achieve their dream of pursuing their education and becomming leaders within their community. They have been paired with 16 young soccer players in Montreal, Quebec - most of whom are university students pursuing their own dreams.

What brings these people from two very different countries on two very different continents together?

One Beautiful Game.

Here you get a chance to meet some of the youth from Cameroon. Next time we learn more about their new friends in Montreal.










Kelda, 17
Plans to become a medical doctor











Emmanuel, 18
Future Accountant











Tambe, 15
Wishes to become the next Samuel Eto'o











Eduardo, 16
Wishes to pursue a Degree in Education











Janet, 21
Hopes to attend a Cameroonian University











Menjane Zita, 15
Wants to play on the National Women's Team


We believe CFDP can help them to follow their dreams for the betterment of themselves, their families, their communities, and their nation.

Peace Is The Goal

We recently - and unexpectedly - received a box of soccer gear in the mail. Up until this point, all of the soccer shoes, balls, shin guards, jerseys, and other soccer equipment which has been collected around the US and Canada for youth in Cameroon remains with the wonderful individuals and teams who began collections within their own communities. We can imagine their closets, garages, and storage space is filling up quickly, so we want to first say THANKS for being patient as we get our plan of action for transporting the equipment to Monteral to be packed in the shipping container and set sail across the Atlantic Ocean for the Port of Douala, Cameroon.

So...You may be asking...where did this box of soccer equipment come from???

Your answer: Fort Atkinson, Wisconson

And...How did it make it to the CFDP Warehouse in Wheeling, West Virginia??

Your Answer:

PEACE IS THE GOAL is a goodwill initiative stared in 2006 by student and soccer player Mitch Arnold. At the tender age of 13, Mitch started by earning money from after-school jobs, like refereeing soccer, and purchasing soccer equipment to send to kids in less priveledged or troubled areas in the world. His aim is to make the world a better place by spreading the message of peace through the WORLD's GAME. Since PEACE IS THE GOAL's inception, over $28,000 worth of equipment, including over 1,000 soccer balls has been distributed in 47 countries across the globe. Read more about it here.

Cheers, Mitch. THANK YOU.

Want to change the world? You can. Start Small. Think Global. Act Local.DO SOMETHING . ORG can help.

Check back with us soon for an update on our Pen Pals!! We have formally introduced 16 players from FSS Salaberry (Montreal soccer club) with 16 youth in Kumba. Participants on both continents are ecstatic. You should be too!!!

CFDP Branches Out

CFDP sessions have begun with our third school in Cameroon!! Our homebase is in Kumba in the South-west Region. Our first satellite school is located in Nkambe in the North-west Region. These are the only two regions in Cameroon where English is the primary language. French dominates the other eight regions. Enjoy this narrative provided by Peter.

The launching of CFDP activities in Nkambe took place on Thursday 27th of January 2011.There were thirty students who participated, 17 girls and 13 boys, ranging in age from 12 to 16. The students were first of schooled on the objective of CFDP by the Cameroon coordinator, Peter Ngwane, and then introduced to the reality of the program. After the session, the youth were encouraged to give feedback. The feedback was positive and more students are showing lot of interest to join. We are looking forward to carry on and keep the flag flying.

Nkambe the head quarters of Donga Mantung Division Of the North-west Region of Cameroon was created as an administrative unit in 1948 by the then British colonial administration and administered as an integral part of the then Southern Cameroons with direct supervision from the Governor General of Nigeria.

Today Nkambe has grown beyond leaps and bounds and is fast becoming a cosmopolitan town. Despite the indicators of modern development found in Nkambe such as schools, hospitals, telecommunication, churches, and an earthen road network from the Region’s headquarter, Bamenda. Nkambe still remains a very traditional society with all the facets of the culture of the people still intact.

Traditional Dancers at the Fon's (Chief's) Palace in the Holy Village of Mankon in the North-west Region

Many factors have hindered the development of the area and left this community especially vulnerable to the spread of HIV/AIDS. The situation of this deadly disease in this region is so serious that, according to a medical officer of the Nkambe Government General Hospital, an estimated six out of ten patients coming for consultation at the hospital are diagnosed to be HIV positive. Their ages typically range from sixteen to thirty-five years.

Therefore the need to create awareness through educative programs to empower youth is an incredible way to curb the wrath of this deadly virus and build a future that will be promising for the advancement of this community. Long Live CFDP!

Government Technical High School (GTHS) Nkambe was founded in 1990 and stands as the Mother Technical school throughout the Division. It has a population of approximately 700 students divided into two sections: commercial and industrial. GTHS Nkambe offers courses such as Office Automation, Accounting, Administrative Communication and Action, Home Economics, Clothing Industry, Wood work, Public Works, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Surveying.

Legal Representation? Check!

We have formed a Board of Directors. We are five at this point in time. Yesterday we had our first meeting with our new team of legal advisors. CFDP has been accepted to the Community Enterprise Clinic at the Duquesne University School of Law. The Community Enterprise Clinic is a transactional clinic that provides legal counseling and representation to non-profit groups and organizations that are committed to effecting change through economic and community development in distressed communities in the Greater Pittsburgh area...and Africa, too :). Two student interns and their supervising attorney will provide pro bono legal assistance to CFDP as we file our Articles of Incorporation with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and submit our Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. This means we will be able to accept tax-deductable donations!! Cha-ching!