How we celebrated International Women’s Day, in Cameroon

Joyful celebrations during a race to mark International Women’s Day in Cameroon

With your support, Born Free is hard at work with local people in the rainforests of Cameroon, protecting rare gorillas and other endangered species. International Women’s Day was celebrated in Duomo Pierre village, on the northern fringe of the Dja Faunal Reserve, with women from surrounding villages enjoying sports, parades and learning how to save on firewood. 

Our Guardians of Dja programme works closely with communities close to the Dja Faunal Reserve, a wildlife-rich tropical forest park, in southeastern Cameroon. In villages which rely heavily on natural resources for survival, Born Free supports activities which promote sustainable use and provide alternative livelihoods.

“Women are central to these initiatives,” explains our Conservation Admin & Comms Officer, Anna Cryer. “Whether it’s learning how to create compost – a natural fertiliser, or how to grow cash crops such as plantain. Cameroon has been making strides towards gender equality, but there is still work to do.

“Donald Mbohli, our remarkable Guardians of Dja Programme lead, is working closely with communities to host events that put women at the centre. So, for this year’s International Women’s Day, Donald and his team organised a full weekend of celebrations and vital training.”

The main workshop was on the development of more sustainable cooking stations

Women came together to learn how to create these cooking sites, which offer a healthier and more environmentally-friendly solution to open fires. 

“We were delighted to have 150 women from five villages attending our event and receiving training,” enthused Donald. “These fire sites will help villagers use less firewood to cook, and consequently reduce deforestation, helping to protect the forest. 

“We’ll follow up with these women in a few weeks to see how they are getting on, creating their own fire sites. We can then offer support as needed.” 

Using locally available materials, these cooking stations concentrate the heat of the fire under the pot, heating it faster. This means less wood is needed to cook meals. Less firewood reduces the amount harvested from the forest, helping to protect this vital habitat for wildlife. 

“The fires we use now produce a lot of smoke, which can make us sick,” shared Celine, one of the participants. “These improved fire sites create less smoke, so will benefit our health. The old fires also made a lot of mess, with ash going everywhere, even in the food. With the improved sites, the ash is held inside and food can be protected.” 

During the weekend, training was also given on how to produce and use natural pesticides, using ingredients such as garlic, pepper and local soap. Natural products can be an effective, wildlife-friendly deterrents to protect vital crops, such as fruit trees, from being devoured by insects. 

Alongside learning, there were plenty opportunities for fun during the weekend. Women took to the football pitch, raced laps around the village (as you can see above), then finished the day dancing. 

Such events are so important to celebrate and empower women. But, our Guardians of Dja team will ensure women and girls are included in conservation work and education across the whole year.