FACT SHEET January 2021

NRC’s operations in

Cameroon Philippe Douryan/NRC Photo:

Humanitarian overview NRC’s operation

In 2020, the humanitarian crises affecting In response to the needs of people affected by vio- deepened due to Covid-19 measures. Limited re- lence and displacement, NRC opened a country office sources make it difficult to meet the needs of the 1.9 in April 2017 in the Far North region of Cameroon. million people affected by displacement in the coun- We opened an office in the South in June try. Many people have lost their civil documentation. 2018, and a sub-office in North West region in March Nearly 36 per cent of school-aged children do not 2019, where we are providing emergency assistance possess birth certificates, limiting their chances of to internally displaced populations. We opened a completing their education. sub-office in the in July 2019 to provide information, counselling and legal assistance to refu- Since 2014, attacks by Boko Haram insurgents have gees from CAR. continued to wreak havoc, forcing mass displace- ments in Cameroon’s Far North region. As of Decem- ber 2020, Cameroon is home to 117,000 Nigerian refugees, 321,000 internally displaced people and 123,000 returnees. In the South West and North West regions, an internal crisis has been raging since 2016, leading to the internal displacement of 711,000 people and around 63,000 Cameroonian refugees in .

Following election violence in Central African Repub- lic (CAR) in December 2020, new refugees arrived, NRC Cameroon joining those already in Cameroon since 2014/15. More than 317,000 refugees from CAR call the East Established 2017 and North home. International staff 11 National staff 156

www.nrc.no NRC Cameroon Country office Yaoundé

Areas of operation Logone & Chari, Mayo Sava and Mayo Tsanaga divisions in the Far North region South West and North West regions East region

NRC Cameroon Phone: +237 685 135 381 Country Director: Maclean Natugasha www.nrc.no/cameroon Email: [email protected] Address: P.O Box 35 596 Yaoundé – Cameroon

Education • train women’s groups in income generating We support local authorities in improving children’s activities and provide them with cash grants for access to quality education. Our teams: start-up of activities • train women in food processing techniques • train primary school teachers in psychosocial sup- • train men and women in improved agricultural port techniques • rehabilitate and equip classrooms damaged during conflict Information, counselling and legal assistance (ICLA) • distribute learning materials to teachers and school We identify challenges related to civil documentation kits to children and provide free information, counselling and legal • support access to accelerated education for out-of- assistance to displaced people, returnees and host school children populations. Our teams:

Food security and livelihoods • visit communities to register cases and counsel We provide assistance to displaced people, those displaced people who lack identity documents who return home and the host populations, to im- and birth certificates prove their food security and revive their livelihoods. • organise group information sessions Our teams: • support displaced people who encounter adminis- trative hurdles in accessing civil documentation • distribute cash so that displaced people can • support registrars’ offices with birth certificate regis- access food and basic needs ters to facilitate the transcription of birth certificate • conduct market monitoring surveys records • distribute small , seeds and agricultural • train local entities involved in childbirth registration inputs • lead a working group on civil documentation, coor-

www.nrc.no dinating with actors to ensure collective advocacy shelters for returnees whose homes were destroyed and harmonisation of costs, tools and procedures during the conflict

We also identify challenges related to access to Water, sanitation and hygiene promotion (WASH) housing, land and property (HLP) rights for affected We support local authorities and communities in populations. Our teams: operating and maintaining water systems to provide safe drinking water. Our teams: • visit communities to register HLP related cases and counsel displaced people on their HLP rights • distribute hygiene kits • train humanitarian NGOs on HLP rights as • distribute menstrual hygiene kits to women and cross-cutting issues girls • train local authorities on HLP rights and collabora- • distribute waste bins in schools tive dispute resolution • repair broken boreholes and construct new ones • lead a working group on HLP, coordinating with • train and support water management committees actors to ensure that HLP is integrated as cross-cut- • support councils with spare parts and borehole ting, but also provide technical support to the maintenance toolkits humanitarian community • construct emergency institutional and family latrines Shelter and settlements • conduct hygiene promotion activities including The increasing number of displaced people has cre- cholera prevention ated great needs for shelter. We work to ensure that • raise awareness on Covid-19 and measures to displaced people and returnees have dignified shel- reduce the risk of infection ters for physical protection. Our teams: • distribute chlorine to health districts in cholera affected areas • distribute mosquito nets, blankets, sleeping mats, and other essential items • provide emergency shelters for displaced popula- tions in informal settings during acute phases of an emergency • provide material support to construct permanent

NRC Cameroon is grateful for the generous support from our donors:

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

French Government (Centre de Crises) Innovation Norway www.nrc.no