West Africa (Paid-Wa) Po Box 133 Buea, Cameroon Faith
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PAN AFRICAN INSTITUTE FOR DEVELOPMENT- WEST AFRICA (PAID-WA) P.O BOX 133 BUEA, CAMEROON FAITH-BASED PEACEBUILDING INITIATIVE IN THE EAST REGION OF CAMEROON: BAHAI FAITH’S APPROACH. A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Development Studies of the Pan African Institute for Deveopment West Africa (PAID-WA) Buea in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Award of a Master of Science (Msc) in Sustainable Development with specialization in Peace, Conflict Resolution, and International Relations. By; NGAYAP KAMGANG LAMBERT CYRILLE (PAID-WA 00589) SUPERVISOR: Professor Uwem Essia JULY 2018 DECLARATION I Ngayap Kamgang Lambert Cyrille hereby declare that this research thesis titled Faith-Based Peacebuilding Initiative in the East Region of Cameroon: Baha’i Faith’s Approach; was written by myself. That the work contained herein is my own and that this work has not been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification except as specified. This work is done in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the award of a Master of Science Degree in Peace, Conflict Resolution and International Relations at the Pan African Institute for Development- West Africa, Buea. Ngayap Kamgang Lambert Cyrille Student/ Researcher: Signature _____________ Date ___________ The above declaration is confirmed. Professor Uwem Essia Supervisor: Signature _____________ Date ___________ i CERTIFICATION ii DEDICATION This research thesis is dedicated, to my family. Especially to my mother Otia Helen, and to my dear wife Anehmbom Ghoutum who have been the sources of the most moral and material support that kept me through the entire program. May God Bless you all abundantly for your kind hearts. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT My greatest thanks goes to God Our Father and Creator of the Heavens and the Earth and whatever is between them. As I sort the title of Master of Science. He is above all the bearer of the most excellent titles throughout the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them. He indeed is the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. He has given me sustenance in plenty as much as I needed to go through this work. I sincerely appreciate my supervisor Professor Uwem Essia. His timely criticism, corrections, suggestions and directions on methodology was a great complement for the refined completion of the work. A great appreciation equally goes to The Pan African Institute for Development West Africa- Buea, to all my lecturers at the institute, and also its entire staff body for providing me the enabling academic environment and vast knowledge acquired through all the numerous specific and diverse courses in peace studies and sustainable development. In deed I can’t find the right words befitting enough to thank you for the priceless value added you have made to my modest person since my enrollment to the program. Your educational craftsmanship has made of me also one of your proud excellent products which I hope to be in the humanitarian and development industry. To all my course mates and friends of the institute I appreciate so much all the valuable discussions we shared both in and out of the classroom. Those too have been very instrumental in widening and deepening my knowledge and insights about some of the concepts expressed in this work. I owe a special debt and gratitude to my mother Otia Helen whose material and moral support throughout my training has been unparalleled to none. To my wife Anehmbom Ghoutum for her profound encouragement even at times when it seemed so difficult. To my cousin Elvis for his timely intervention at a time most needed, and to the rest of my family for all the moral support I received in the course of the program. I can’t forget a special friend and brother Masango Sixtus who even though from a distant country, has been very helpful through meaningful and contributory conversations as well as material support to see me through this project. To my friend and brother Gideon Tem who unfortunately has passed on even before the final submission of this work. The assistance you rendered to me through all the days of field accompaniment covering the research work are unforgettable. May God bless your soul abundantly. I offer equally Prayers of blessing to all mentioned above. iv ABSTRACT The recent spate of violent confrontations in the world and Cameroon, in particular, further deepens humanity’s alarming chaos and turmoil. This presents an ever complex challenge to resolving the problem of insecurity and national/international conflicts. For the East Region of Cameroon, the problem constitutes the heightened insecurity problems caused by the high influx of refugees fleeing the Boko Haram conflicts in the North Region and the political/sectarian conflicts in the Central African Republic (CAR). This thesis draws from the discourse of the role played by religion in fostering world peace and thus world order. The work has as main objective to investigate the faith-based peacebuilding initiatives led by the Baha’i Faith in the East Region of Cameroon. Therefore as specific objectives, the work attempted to evaluate to what extent the Baha’i Faith’s system has made an impact on community peacebuilding in the East Region of Cameroon. Hence the work investigated the socio, economic and political impact of the Baha’i Faith social action initiatives in peacebuilding. These objectives were investigated by accessing data in two principal ways. That is primary and secondary sources. Primary sources included interviews, focused group discussions and observation while secondary sources involved a wide range of literature review through in-depth library research. The results of this qualitative research are analyzed and presented through an in-depth analysis approach. One that analyzed the output from the interviewees and the focus group discussions and organized the information gathered in order of coherent essays. Essays which provided the necessary explanations and understanding of the results or findings. In this wise, it was found that a Baha’i-inspired educational program called Preparation for Social Action (PSA) delivered in combination with a parallel program called Ruhi Sequence of Courses (Institute Courses) are the two leading educational instruments used by the Baha’i Faith in the East Region of Cameroon. These are the instruments used to build capacity in locals to arise voluntarily in selfless service and to engage in numerous community peacebuilding initiatives in their various communities. Such results have been seen in an improved status of women, improved community health care, more significant and diverse agricultural yields, better educational standards and environmental protection and the promotion of national unity. Based on field experience, this research is inclined to say that faith-based organizations are clearly involved in peacebuilding solutions for social transformation of the society. Index Words: Faith-based, Peacebuilding, East region, Baha’i Faith, Social Action Initiatives. v TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION............................................................................................................................ i CERTIFICATION ........................................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION.............................................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ........................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................ vi LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... xi LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................................... xii LIST OF ABREVIATIONS ...................................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER ONE ........................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background to Study ............................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................................... 6 1.3 Research Objectives .............................................................................................................. 8 1.4 Research Hypotheses ............................................................................................................. 8 1.5 Significance of the Study ...................................................................................................... 8 1.6 Scope of the Study ............................................................................................................... 10 1.7 The Study Area.................................................................................................................... 11 1.7.1 Geographical Location of the Study Area .......................................................................