Girls Shall Rise (GSR) Program in Cameroon. An initiative of Bright Light Projects(BLP)
4 min read
Girls Shall Rise is a flagship program by Bright Light Projects with a focus on providing educational support, skills training and advocacy for Survivors of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) specifically violence against women and children, Commercial Sex workers, and other vulnerable girls and women.
Bright Light Projects Cameroon (BLPC) began mapping for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Buea municipality in the South West Region of Cameroon in April of 2021 in collaboration with the regional delegation of the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and the Family in Buea Southwest region of Cameroon, community stakeholders, local chiefs, caregivers and community Counselors.
Buea Municipality and surrounding communities in Fako Division, have been the focus for their fieldwork conducting vulnerability assessments in the villages of Likombe, Bova 1, Bova 2, Bwassa, Likoko, Great Soppo Buea. Vulnerability assessments are conducted based on BLP’s key performance indicators in line with BLP’s Girls Shall Rise (GSR) Campaign which has witnessed great success in Sierra Leone.
According to the Bright light Projects’ coordinator in Cameroon, Mr EKOLE BAZIL NAJEMBE about 300 assessments have been conducted in these villages between the months of April – July 2021. The most vulnerable girls will be selected as beneficiaries to be pioneers of BLP’s Girls Shall Rise Program in Cameroon.
The ongoing Anglophone crisis for about four years has brought lots of hardship and with an influx from remote villages to major cities of Buea, Bafoussam, Bamenda, Douala, and Yaounde about 800,000 Internally Displaced Persons especially women and children. The Cameroon Government and the social service sector has a huge responsibility in helping these IDPs and the Government cannot do it alone. BLPC is simply complementing government efforts in key areas especially when it comes to Gender-Based Violence, livelihood empowerment for rural women. reproductive health issues, etc
In some villages, young girls are already forming a task force to help fight rape and domestic servitude. As part of their mission to build the capacity of frontline activists in marginalized communities, BLPC will organize workshops in these communities to train them on proper identification, response and sensitization. Young Girls will be trained as BLPC Ambassadors in some of these villages
GSR program witnessed tremendous success in Sierra Leone and is now being replicated in Cameroon particularly in Fako Division and surrounding communities where vulnerable girls and women will be provided with necessary support both educational and livelihood empowering them to be change agents in their communities. Mr EKOLE BAZIL NAJEMBE is quoted saying that “When you empower a woman, you build an entire community of change-makers.” The long term goal of their GSR campaign is to turn vulnerable girls and women into Serial entrepreneurs.
Support Girls Shall Rise Campaign through the link below: Home – Bright light Projects
To accomplish their mission, the Bright light projects have established a Memorandum of Understanding with OIC located in Buea that will be giving vocation training to selected vulnerable and underprivileged girls for the BLPC scholarship program. Bright light projects Cameroon ( BLPC ) under the leadership of Mr EKOLE BAZIL NAJEMBE, an expert in local development and international decentralized cooperation, aims to provide the necessary support for both educational and sustainable livelihood empowerment to the vulnerable and underprivileged girls in these communities.
In these villages, most people live below the poverty line while girls and women are the most vulnerable especially in the area of education. Poverty, underdevelopment, lack of job opportunities, conservatism causes a majority of girls in the villages to be deprived of their basic right to education. Other social problems such as child marriage, trafficking and discrimination have also contributed to undermining girl’s right to education. Limited access to education means many are stuck in a cycle of poverty.
Support Girls Shall Rise Campaign through the link below: Home – Bright light Projects
About the Organisation:
Bright Lights Projects (BLP) is a United States based Public Charity 501© (3) Non-Profit Organization with Headquarters in Houston, Texas. One of the cornerstones of BLP’s success is its ability to build strategic partnerships with organizations championing specific humanitarian needs, for example, concert for Ebola Relief in Maryland in 2014 which benefited Doctors Without Borders, and International Medical Corps. BLP is registered in Sierra Leone, in Guinea Conakry, with operations in Nigeria and Cameroon.
In May 2021, BLP was granted special consultative status as an NGO with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations is the principal organ to coordinate Economic, Social, and related work of the 14 UN specialized agencies, functional commissions and the five regional commissions.
VISION:
To Promote and Support BLP beneficiaries to become Self-reliant and Contribute Positively to the Development of their Communities.
MISSION
Implement viable, sustainable community-based projects through strategic partnerships in the United States & Sub-Saharan Africa.
CORE ADVOCACY AREAS:
BLP has a simplistic approach to support and conduct non-partisan initiatives in rebuilding broken communities in Sub- Saharan Africa in the domain of:
• Refugee & Internally Displaced Persons Support (IDPs)
• Gender-Equality and Social Inclusion (Domestic Violence & Social Inclusion
• Human Rights (Disabilities, Women, Children) || Education (Formal/Informal)
• Community Healthcare || Youth Advocacy || Prison Inmate Reintegration
• Community Financial Literacy || Micro-Finance
Support Girls Shall Rise Campaign through the link below: Home – Bright light Projects
Berinyuy Cajetan is the founder and publisher of Human Rights and Legal Research Centre (HRLRC) since 2017. He has intensive experience in strategic communications for Civil Society Organizations, campaign and advocacy, and social issues. He has an intensive experiencing in human rights monitoring, documentation and reporting.
