Annual Reports
Local Youth Corner Cameroon Annual Reports
Local Youth Corner Cameroon Annual Reports
Introduction
In 2018, Local Youth Corner Cameroon (LOYOC) reached more than 70,000 young people across 50 communities in all 10 Regions of Cameroon.
This extensive outreach was achieved through three major projects within LOYOC’s Peacebuilding, Hate Speech, P/CVE (Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism), Rehabilitation, and Reintegration Program.
Communities were impacted through peer-to-peer education, training-of-trainers workshops, media programs, publications, and “Pass It On” activities led by trained youth facilitators.
LOYOC also prioritized youths with a history of, or vulnerability to, violence, empowering them through rehabilitation and reintegration capacity-building sessions for other youth activists.
Through these flagship projects, LOYOC strengthened collaboration between youth and government actors to promote sustainable peace, culminating in the development of an Action Agenda, policy recommendations, and the National Rehabilitation and Reintegration Network (NRRN) established in 2017.
Beyond peacebuilding and P/CVE, LOYOC also carried out training programs on education, gender, governance, and democracy, broadening its impact nationwide.
Introduction
Over the past five years, Local Youth Corner Cameroon has worked tirelessly to ensure that young Cameroonians are recognized as key actors in peacebuilding, and that their initiatives are valued by development partners engaged in conflict resolution.
In 2019, LOYOC focused on countering hate speech and promoting the rehabilitation and reintegration of former violent offenders. Although the crisis in the Far North Region showed signs of easing, the armed conflict between separatist fighters and government forces in the Northwest and Southwest Regions persisted. Throughout the year, LOYOC intensified efforts to prevent violent extremism and create platforms for young Cameroonians to actively engage in national peace processes.
A significant national milestone in 2019 was the Major National Dialogue, convened by the President of the Republic of Cameroon to address the armed conflict and broader security challenges. LOYOC seized this opportunity to influence policy by ensuring youth voices were represented through realistic and solution-driven proposals aimed at ending violence and promoting peace.
This report provides an overview of LOYOC’s major activities and achievements during the year 2019.