Local Partner: Laimaru
Background and objective:
Over 11,000 indigenous Mbororo pastoralists have been displaced from their traditional lands by Ambazonia separatists in their war with the Cameroonian government. Their traditional way of life has been destroyed and their cattle herding livelihoods completely affected. As a result, Mbororo pastoralists are seeking refuge in the more peaceful Western Region of Cameroon. The Pulaaku Peace and Resilience project has two parts. First, the engagement and empowerment of Mbororo indigenous women, children and men, who have been internally displaced by ongoing conflict in different parts of Cameroon. The engagement will be done through carefully organized activities using Fulfulde (the native language of the indigenous Mbororo) and the Pulaaku concept. The second part is a workshop that will bring together women, children, community leaders, activists, allies and stakeholders. The ultimate goal of the project is to use the Mbororo indigenous Code of Conduct to promote peaceful co-existence and resilience. It will also introduce them to cooking with eco charcoal made from household waste, portable solar power, rainwater harvesting and biogas and water systems. The charcoal does not produce smoke and does not blacken pots. These systems are affordable, rooted in indigenous knowledge of sun, rain and lifestyle
2660 directly reached within the lifespan of the initiative, these comprising of women, men and youth. Shared and learnt how to deal with displacement, resilience, traditional knowledge and peaceful coexistence. On average 38 learners regularly participated in each of the 11 learning circles within the targeted communities making total of 418 learners (312 women and 106 men) 495 people (410 women and 85) trained on the use of echo-friendly charcoal using household waste. This training has impacted on their lives as it helped them use it on daily basis for cooking hence reducing one of the challenges they faced. Indigenous knowledge revitalized through identifying practitioners and documentation.
Local partner information: Laimaru was created and registered in 2012 . Laimaru means “umbrella” in Fulfulde. It brings together minority and indigenous organizations, and activists, to increase their effectiveness in defending indigenous peoples and minority rights, mitigate impacts, and share knowledge and resources
