Member countries that make up the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) in West and Central Africa have converged in Yaounde for a three day conference where they are sharing experiences on strengths and competences as well as reflecting on how to adapt to internal and external challenges affecting them. The conference opened on 25th July 2023 in the presence of Felix Mbayu, Cameroon’s Minister Delegate to the Minister of External Relations in charge of Relations with the Commonwealth.
The CLGF being hosted by Cameroon is attended by personalities from across the board; Rwanda, Gabon, Botswana, Togo, the United Kingdom and Cameroon with a host of it’s regional and local authorities. The conference jointly organised by the government of Cameroon and the CLGF is funded by the European Union. It is taking place under the theme “Building back better: examining social and economic strategies to strengthen resilience in West and Central Africa”. The subject of the three day conference was articulated by Mmachakga Mpho B.W Moruakgomo of Botswana, Chairperson of the CLGF and the Vice Chair, Georges Elanga Obam of Cameroon. According to the leaders of CLGF, the conference is a moment to share experiences on how member countries are implementing local governance and local financing policies in order to learn from each other and improve conditions. Also it is a moment to build resilience in the face of shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economic meltdown, climate change and the Russian-Ukrainian war which is negatively affecting member countries of the Commonwealth.
Elaborating on this, the Chair of the forum said “The COVID-19 pandemic was devastating. The shock that came showed some cracks in our structures, our community and work and with the devastation we need to rebuild and the best way to rebuild is to build in a better way that can withstand the shocks in the future. COVID-19 should be a lesson to us. We thank God we survived, thanks to the local authorities, councils, cities and local governments for the work they have done in responding with service to our people during the time when this emergency came. None of us were prepared for it. Most of our structures were not prepared for it. How can we build better here after. Build in a way that we can create resilience. We can also build capacities that would withstand the future shocks by reconstructing our societies in a way that they are able to serve themselves, they can withstand the shocks that come unexpectedly like COVID did” the Chairman spoke, concerning the purpose of the conference.
Stakeholders of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum are of the premise that giving power and authority to local authorities make them apt to manage disaster. Thus stakeholders are amplifying their voices that communities be given the ability to fend for themselves. “Communities know that, that is what they need. They just need our accompaniment to plan with them, mobilise resources and give them that opportunity to make their choices and therefore create local resilience. It will be better for the future if they take their destiny into their own hands. Therefore, nations and states should look forward, craft policies and laws in a way that allow local communities to participate more effectively and efficiently. This would be a better way of doing things in the future and to sustain the work we do for empowerment of communities. That makes communities be architects of their own empowerment, betterment and movement forward. Local government is the best vehicle that can empower people” The Chairman furthet explained. In the same vein, the Vice Chair, Minister Georges Elanga Obam, addressed stakeholders of the CLGF stressing the need for resilience in the midst of crises. He said “The theme of our conference examines social and economic strategies to strengthen resilience in West and Central Africa. It is timely as it provides a platform for local stakeholders to examine the wide range of issues which may hamper development and make feasible proposals to overcome these obstacles. We must build back our society from security, sanitary, political, climatic, economic and social crisis which have negatively impacted economic growth. In doing this, we must learn from the past to inform the future, share our experiences and copy best practices. The proceedings of this conference should therefore provide us the opportunity to come up with concrete proposals to better the lives of our population” he told fellow Commonwealth members.
On spotlight at the conference opening were a host of members who expressed the benefits of the Commonwealth and their wishes at the ongoing forum .
The Vice Chair of the United Councils and Cities of Cameroon, Dighambong Anthony Mvo confidently holds that the ongoing CLGF would hone skills of councillors and make them more productive.
To the President of the Northwest Regional Council Mr Angwafo III Fru Fobuzshi, discussions at the forum would accelerate the development of the local economy.
The Cooperation Team Leader of the European Union Delegation to Cameroon, Jerome Pons in his remarks at the conference was hopeful that discussions at the conference would promote EU values and interests for the benefit of local communities.
For the Mayor of Yaounde City, Messi Atangana Luc, the benefits from the conference would further benefit the grassroot population.
The Mayor Kumba of City Council Gregory Mewanu, on his part sees it as a moment to share with others Cameroon’s rich experience as well as “copy good examples from others”
Members of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum in the Central and West African region uphold democracy as the heart and call of the Commonwealth. Within the three day conference, taking place in Mont Febe Yaounde, they are striving to make recommendations for all citizens to actively participate in governance and have the capacity to respond to any kind of endogenous or exogenous shock. The panel discussions at the conference that would focus on innovative finance, the need to strengthen social cohesion and climate change are aimed to provide participants with tools to make constructive contributions which would be nurtured into recommendations that can be implemented for Commonwealth members to be able to resist all challenges either at the economic, political or social level.
By Mildred Ndum Wung Kum
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