To promote the art of storytelling, social cohesion and peace, a young Cameroonian storyteller and author, Mbilla Claris Nyibeh recently organised a purpose storytelling workshop bringing together children who are survivors of conflict.
PHOTO: Mbilla Claris Nyibeh, Storyteller
The workshop which is the fruits of a program she initiated called “Purpose storytelling Project”, was organised at the Afrogiveness Movement head office in Yaoundé on 25th March 2023, as part of activities to mark the annual Celebration of World Story Telling Day.
The initiative which was executed in partnership with Afrogiveness Movement, brought together children between the ages of five and fifteen years who relived experiences about conflict.
As a strategy to render psychosocial support to the young survivors of conflict, the workshop gave children the opportunity to listen and tell stories. The event also gave the children the opportunity to project and share talents in dancing and singing songs that tell stories.
To pass across the message of social cohesion and peace, the author shared a story with the children about a queen who misplaced her magical musical calabash which was picked by a young common boy. As per the promise of the queen after she falls sick following the loss of her animating musical calabash, the person who provides the missing calabash is to be adopted into the royal family. To the shock of many, it is the common boy who provides the old queen’s calabash and he is adopted into the royal family in the imaginary village of Bamunka.
The story meant to encourage children never to have a feeling irrelevance of self wherever they are . The author emphasized that everyone has a role to play in the community regardless of class or position.
Speaking to this reporter about her inspiration that gave birth to the storytelling vision, she revealed that “before I came up with this idea, I have always loved telling stories since childhood. I also love listening to stories. So, getting to adulthood, I discovered that my talent was wasting , and to revamp it, I decided to come up with this storytelling project. I named it “purpose storytelling” because it has a purpose to instill love, peace and moral values in children who are the leaders of tomorrow”.
In upholding these moral values in children, the vision bearer has been in the past organising storytelling workshops and competitions during which children compete in telling moral stories, and sharing lessons learned.
In an exclusive press chat with Claris about the workshop, she said “ the context of this event is the commemoration of World Storytelling Day celebrated every year on 20th March. The tradition of storytelling day is that it is either celebrated on the day or the days around it. We chose Saturday 25th March for the Celebration because we know children will be at home and free to come attend this storytelling workshop. I organized this workshop in order to bring the children together so that they should know they can live with the underprivileged around them, and together we can build a better life. Most of the times I tell the stories and at the same time I give them the floor to tell their own stories. It’s very necessary for them to tell their own stories because it broadens their minds, gives them retentive memories , and it’s a way of teaching them how to better tell the stories and not just listening.” She explained.
Mbilla Claris Nyibeh is a young writer graduating with a degree in Sociology (Population and Development) in the University of Yaoundé 1. She hails from Bamunka in Ngoh-ketunja Division of Cameroon’s Northwest Region. Prior to becoming a leader, she is currently a purpose scholar at Afrogiveness Movement. The “Purpose Storytelling Project “ which she overseas, was initiated in 2020.
By Beng Humphrey Fang
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