By Neba Jerome Ambe
In a bold move to promote environmental hygiene and community involvement, the Bafut Council has donated sanitation equipment to all the 54 villages within the municipality. The initiative done on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, was aimed at empowering local communities to maintain cleaner and healthier surroundings, including the distribution of wheelbarrows, spades, dig axes, writing board and materials and other sanitation tools.
The distribution ceremony took place at the Bafut Council Hall, drawing traditional leaders, quarter heads, youth representatives, and members of local development associations from all beneficiary villages. Each village received a consignment of tools tailored to their specific cleanup needs.
The project, which is valued at over a hundred million francs CFA, is part of a larger sanitation and community development program jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Decentralization and Local Development (MINDDEVEL). This collaboration marks a significant investment in grassroots development, environmental management, and the promotion of local governance.
Mayor Ngwakongoh Lawrence of Bafut
Speaking at the handover event, the Mayor of Bafut, Ngwakongoh Lawrence emphasized the council’s commitment to sustainable development and civic engagement.
“Today’s donation is not just about tools, it is about empowering our people to take ownership of their communities,” the mayor stated. “Clean villages mean healthier families, stronger tourism potential, and a more vibrant local economy. This support coming from MINDDEVEL is to make sure that we can manage waste within the municipality well. Accompanying these items is a dump truck and tricycles that the council will use to collect this waste from door to door so that those that can be transformed for others'' usage will be done," added the Mayor.
Representing the Mankwi community, Ngwaka Angeline hailed the Bafut Council as a model of effective decentralization, commending the proactive efforts to include all 54 villages in the development plans of the Council. He noted that such projects are pivotal in transforming living conditions and instilling a culture of responsibility and environmental stewardship.
Local chiefs and community leaders expressed gratitude for the equipment, pledging to mobilize residents regularly for community work. They described the support as timely, especially as the rainy season approaches and the need for proper drainage and waste management becomes more pressing.
Community development experts have praised the initiative, pointing out that it aligns with national goals of improving public health, reducing urban migration, and encouraging local solutions to local problems.
The Bafut Council has announced that follow-up training sessions on tool maintenance, waste management, and coordinated cleanup strategies will be organized in the coming weeks to ensure the sustainability of the project.
With this effort, Bafut is setting a precedent for community-driven sanitation in the Northwest Region, one village at a time.
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