Local Health, Nutrition Governance Project : Helen Keller Begins Regional Launch Of Phase II

The project to enable local councils to promote vaccination, school health; prevent obesity and anaemia, foster nutrition in communities, and resource mobilisation to prevent and fight diseases, was earlier launched at the national level in Yaounde on September 15, 2022. Running from 2022-2023, the project, which is in its second phase, was rolled out by Dr. Ismael Teta, Cameroon Country Director of Helen Keller International, which is implementing it. Financed by the German Technical Cooperation, GiZ, the project covers 23 council areas in the West, East and Adamawa Regions.

Helen Keller-FEICOM Partnership 
The launch of “Nurturing Vaccination Through Improvement of Local Quality Cold Chain System and Health Promotion in Cameroon,” or LOKALE II (“lokale” being the German word for “local”), took place in the head office of the the Special Council Support Fund for Mutual Assistance, FEICOM, Mimboman, Yaounde. The project is sequel to the first phase, “Fostering Local Governance for Quality Health and Nutrition in Covid-19 Era” or LOKALE I, which involved 15 council areas in the West and Adamawa Regions.

Supported By Government
LOKALE II is supported by FEICOM, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Secondary Education, and the Ministry of Decentralisation and Local Development. It seeks to strengthen the capacity of local officials in health promotion and nutrition. The launch in Bertoua, capital of Cameroon’s East Region on October 12, 2022, was also carried out by Dr Ismael Teta.

East Region Laid The Seed
“The East Region hosted the first project upon my arrival in Cameroon. The project in 2018 had to do with nutrition in local governance. This was crowned by the commitment of 33 mayors in the region to set aside separate budget lines for financing the fight against malnutrition in their council areas. This encouraged the Council Support Fund for Mutual Assistance, FEICOM, to offer 100 per cent support to any council fighting malnutrition. FEICOM reimbursed by 100 per cent, all expenses by councils in the fight malnutrition,” Dr Teta recalled. 

GiZ Interest 
The German Technical Cooperation, GiZ also got interested and requested that the concept be extended to include health in general. Together with GiZ, Helen Keller in 2020 launched the “Fostering Local Governance for Quality Health and Nutrition in Covid-19 Era” or LOKALE I, including Adamawa and the West Regions, based on the experience garnered from the East Region.  

Project Expansion
At the end of project’s first phase, Helen Keller requested GiZ for the project to be extended to the East Region, where the seed was laid. This is why under LOKALE II project; four councils from the East Region (Bertoua I, Atock, Ngoura and Garoua Boulai) are included. “To us, this is a double occasion - the regional launch of the new project and the offer of equipment to the 23 participating councils; and the training of local council officials and elected local officials. The launch of the project will be followed by similar events in Adamawa and West Regions,” Dr Ismael Teta promised.

4 East Region Councils Included
Opening the training, Olivier Cromwell Bembell D’lpack, the Mayor of Bertoua I Subdivisional Council recalled that the workshop was holding soon after Helen Keller International signed a partnership deal with the Council Support Fund for Mutual Assistance. “The agreement includes four councils from the East Region and we are so grateful about this. We believe and hope the partnership will help in the better management and running of our councils," the Mayor said.

Proper Support, Mentoring
“With the support and mentorship of health districts, we believe the project will take roots. There can be no effective development if the people concerned are not healthy. Decentralization expects much from Mayors. I hope we will be up to the task,” Olivier Cromwell Bembell said.

Decentralisation And Health
Prof. Pierre Ongolo-Zogo, the head of the group facilitating the workshop...