To help keep the city of Douala clean, 1,500 women have joined the “Douala Clean City! It’s Possible” campaign. The operation mainly focuses on clearing drains, cleaning streets, and raising public awareness about the importance of the project and the role hygiene and sanitation play in Cameroon’s economic capital. Narcisse Oum went to meet these “cleanliness soldiers.”
Douala – its port, sports infrastructure, economic center… and its streets littered with various types of waste. Once admired for its wide green boulevards and beautiful riverbank promenades, Cameroon’s economic capital and the leading metropolis in the CEMAC region has decided it’s time to clean up. The idea is simple: enlist women’s associations to clean the streets and raise awareness about uncleanliness and environmental degradation. A task highly appreciated by local residents.
“These women are doing a genuinely good job, and we, the motorcycle taxi drivers, appreciate them greatly because thanks to them, the city is getting its shine back. They deserve encouragement.”
— Hervé Noudjan, motorcycle taxi driver – Cameroon
By involving women—who are often seen as the guardians of cleanliness in the home—the authorities of Douala hope to make them key players in addressing urban management issues. Through this collaboration with women’s groups, the city hopes to restore the beauty of this urban area of nearly 5 million residents and turn Douala into one of the most beautiful cities on the continent.
“I do this work to make my country clean. It also allows me to earn a little income.”
— Laurentin Messomo, sanitation worker in Douala 3 – Cameroon
“We work on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, and some prefer to work on Saturdays to make sure Sundays are clean. We work from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. to avoid the sun.”
— Marie Louise Ekane, Deputy Coordinator for Douala 5 – Cameroon
Considering the efforts made in the field since the operation began, it is now up to the city authorities and project partners to support these sanitation “amazons” by providing them with proper equipment and vehicles for waste collection once the cleaning is done. This will help prevent the waste from being blown back into the streets by the wind—a recurring problem.
Source : AFRICA24