4th July to 30th August 2026 | Tiko, Fako Division, South West Region
Five years ago, Local Youth Corner Cameroon (LOYOC) had a simple but powerful conviction: that sports & recreational activities have the ability to build social cohesion, moral, civic and entrepreneurial rearmament between and among diverse groups of people. It could bring people together across lines of fear, displacement, and difference. It could create space for young people who had been forced from their homes to stand on a pitch alongside the people who had received them, and find, in the shared language of play, something worth protecting together.
That conviction became the Na We We Sports Jamboree. Na We We, meaning “We are one” is now one of LOYOC’s most visible and impactful peacebuilding programmes. It has grown from a local youth-led initiative in Yaounde into an annual Jamboree that moves across Cameroon’s regions, taking its message of social cohesion to the communities that need it most. This year, it arrives in Tiko, Fako Division, South West Region, for its 5th Edition, under the theme: Stronger Together in Times of Crisis Through Sports.
Where It Started and Why
The Jamboree was born out of a specific and urgent reality. The conflict in the North West and South West regions of Cameroon has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, many of them young, into neighbouring regions and host communities across the country. These displaced persons, referred to as IDPs, arrived in places like Yaounde, Bertoua, and Bafousam carrying trauma, uncertainty, and the weight of forced departure.
Host communities, despite their generosity, faced real pressures too: strained resources, heightened tensions, and the slow erosion of trust that comes when fear goes unaddressed. Young people on both sides of that divide risked becoming isolated, radicalised, or simply lost.
LOYOC’s response was to build something joyful. A sports and recreational activity where every team is deliberately composed of both IDPs and host community members. Where team names like Peace, Solidarity, Tolerance, and Love are not decorative but instructional. Where, before each match, a player takes five minutes to speak to the crowd about what their team name means, and what it demands of all of us.
| “Every time you kick the ball, you are kicking hate speech out of our nation.” Prof. Paschal Kum Awah, Representative of MINJEC, 2nd Edition |
Four Editions, Four Cities, One Mission
Each edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree has been shaped by the city that hosted it, the partners who supported it, and the young people who showed up. Here is a brief look at the journey so far.
| 1ST EDITION 2022 | Yaounde, Centre Region Theme: “Sports for Peace” The founding edition, held in Yaounde, established the Jamboree’s core model: mixed IDP and host community teams, solidarity gala matches, health screenings, and the signature solidarity meal. It laid the blueprint that every edition since has built on. |
| 2ND EDITION 2023 | Douala, Littoral Region Theme: “Using Sports to Build Social Cohesion” This edition drew dignitaries including the EU Ambassador to Cameroon and the Deputy Representative of UNFPA, who played in the solidarity gala match. Over 1,500 participants attended the opening ceremony. The female football match, cultural exhibitions by displaced persons, free medical consultations, and a live performance by musician Mr. Loe made this a landmark edition. |
| 3RD EDITION 2024 | Bafousam, West Region Theme: “Sports for Peace and Social Cohesion” The 3rd Edition took the Jamboree to the West for the first time, deepening its reach into conflict-affected territory. It introduced expanded community service days and reinforced LOYOC’s growing network of UN, government, and civil society partners. |
| 4TH EDITION 2025 | Bertoua, East Region Theme: “Uniting Through Sports” Held from July to August 2025, the 4th Edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree in Bertoua drew over 1,500 spectators to its opening ceremony alone and engaged more than 264 young athletes in a city-wide clean-up campaign. Over 300 individuals received free medical screenings. A Living Together Camp brought 300 youth into peer-to-peer dialogue sessions. Partners included MINJEC, UNHCR, UNFPA, UNDP, UNRC, OHCHR, IOM, Plan International, and private sector actors including Source Bonis and Olam Agri/Riz Bijou. |
Why Tiko for the 5th Edition?
The selection of Tiko as host city for the 5th Edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree was deliberate, competitive, and meaningful. Tiko was chosen over Ebolowa in the South Region and Maroua in the Far North Region, based on four key factors: the presence of a significant community of displaced young people; its exemplary preparedness, the strength of youth mobilisation in the area, and the clear and committed interest expressed by local elected officials.
LOYOC Executive Director Achaleke Christian framed the choice this way: by selecting Tiko, the gateway into the South West, LOYOC envisions fostering innovation within the region, leveraging Tiko’s creative strengths, including its entrepreneurship and emerging film industry.
But there is more to the choice than opportunity. Tiko sits in a region that has known the weight of crisis firsthand. The South West has been one of the most directly affected regions in the ongoing Anglophone conflict. Bringing the Jamboree here is not a symbolic gesture: it is a statement of presence, solidarity, and belief that young people in this region deserve the same investment in their future as any other.
Mokoko Tanga John, the Youth Senator of Fako, represented Mayor Chief Peter Messoso III at the press conference announcing the edition, affirming the municipality’s readiness and enthusiasm. That kind of local ownership matters enormously to how the Jamboree operates and what it is able to achieve.
The Theme: Stronger Together in Times of Crisis Through Sports
Each edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree carries a theme that speaks to the moment. The theme for the 5th Edition, Stronger Together in Times of Crisis Through Sports, is perhaps the most direct statement the Jamboree has ever made.
It does not look away from the word “crisis.” It names it clearly, and then places the community’s response right beside it. The message is not that sports erase crisis. The message is that in the middle of a crisis, sports give communities a way to face each other, to compete together, and to remember that what connects them is stronger than what divides them.
This edition will also take a significant step beyond the tournament itself: it will contribute to the development of a national guide on using sports to promote social cohesion in Cameroon. The Jamboree has always been a programme with ambitions beyond the pitch, and this guide represents the formalisation of five years of practice into something that can be shared, replicated, and built upon nationwide.
What to Expect: 4th July to 30th August 2026
Running from 4th July to 30th August 2026, the 5th Edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree will bring together young people from Fako Division and beyond across three core sports disciplines: Football (male and female categories) and Handball. As always, every team will be newly formed and composed of both IDPs and host community members between the ages of 15 and 35.
Beyond the matches, participants can expect the full Na We We experience that has defined every edition: sensitisation sessions on gender-based violence prevention, maternal health, and family planning; civic education and youth electoral participation workshops; peer-to-peer dialogue and the Living Together Camp; community service activities; free medical screenings; cultural exhibitions; and the solidarity meal that has become one of the most symbolic moments of each Jamboree.
High-level state dignitaries, senior United Nations officials, and former Indomitable Lions players are expected to be in attendance, ensuring that the young people competing do so on a stage that matches their effort and their courage.
Get Involved
The 5th Edition of the Na We We Sports Jamboree is already underway in its preparation phase. Coaches based in Fako Division who are ready to build and lead a team are invited to express their interest before the deadline of Friday, 1st May 2026. Registration is free and open to coaches aged 18 to 60.
Partners, sponsors, and organisations wishing to be part of this edition can reach out to LOYOC directly to discuss how to contribute to one of Cameroon’s most distinctive youth peacebuilding initiatives.