Since its founding in 2018, SELF has touched the lives of hundreds of underprivileged persons including orphans, internally displaced persons, single mothers, persons with disabilities, etc. by providing them with school supplies and school fees through our “Back to School with SELF” project; providing livelihood skills training and support to internally displaced persons in Cameroon though our “SELF IDP Livelihood Skills Training and Support project; providing collateral-free and interest-free microloans to internally displaced persons and other disadvantaged and vulnerable persons especially women to enable them start micro business through our “SELF Microcredit Initiative”; and has executed several other humanitarian and charitable works. Our work builds self-esteem, imparts knowledge, and equips people in dire need with skills to enhance their livelihood. We do everything possible to equip them with the ability to support themselves and contribute to the sustainable development of their communities.
EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT
Back to School with SELF
Every child has the right to safe, inclusive, and quality education
Believing that education should be available to all and not only those who can afford it, SELF has taken a special interest in the less fortunate children and young people who have passion for education but have limited or no resources to get a safe, inclusive, and quality education they need to thrive.​
MICROCREDITS
SELF Microcredit Initiative (SMIT)
Supporting Internally Displaced Persons to re-establish their livelihood using a microcredit based approach
The SELF Microcredit Initiative focuses on stable and economically active internally displaced persons from the North West and South West Regions seeking refuge in the major unaffected cities of Cameroon; and who have the skills, capacity, and desire to actively pursue a livelihood; but lack the financial resources to transform their micro business ideas into practical realities.
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​This project supports livelihoods of these selected internally displaced persons using a credit-based approach as a sustainable and dignified way both to assist displaced people and to benefit their host communities. Through a well-established Revolving Fund, the SELF Microcredit Initiative provides small collateral-free and interest-free business loans to support the start-up or expansion of small businesses or microenterprises for predominately disadvantaged internally displaced persons; especially women, who demonstrate their own initiative in starting a business, or who have operational businesses needing additional capital…. and who have the capacity to pay back the loans to permit others to benefit. This initiative improves the living conditions and increases the dignity, self-esteem, and economic self-reliance of eligible beneficiaries
SKILL TRAINING
IDP Livelihood Skills Training and Support Project
Providing relevant, reliable, and sustainable livelihood skills training to internally displaced youths
Having limited education and inadequate skills; and having been disconnected from their communities and social networks makes it harder for most out-of-school internally displaced youths living under harsh conditions in the major unaffected cities across Cameroon to find employment. Most of these youths have therefore tremendously remained poor, are highly vulnerable to exploitation and marginalization, and some are often forced to resort to inappropriate survival strategies.
The IDP Livelihood Skills Training and Support Project creates economic opportunities for eligible disadvantaged out-of-school internally displaced youths by providing them with chances for quality skills training and apprenticeship that would increase employability, smoothen their transition from inactivity to employment or self-employment, and improve their socio-professional integration. Considering that traditional apprenticeship training is a low-cost skills training method that conveniently provides learning opportunities to individuals who lack the educational requirements for formal training; the project uses the apprenticeship training approach. Eligible project beneficiary youth are taken to the appropriate identified and selected artisans so that they can receive practical hands-on training in marketable trades of their choice ranging from tailoring, carpentry, hairdressing, manicure/pedicure, motor mechanics, and office automation, etc... for a recognized and agreed period. At the end of their training, the beneficiaries will either be accompanied to be gainfully employed or supported with collateral-free microloans to start-up their small business enterprises
SELF AGRO
SELF Agro-pastoral Capacity Building, Demonstration, and Production Centre – Kompina
Improving the nutrition, food, and income securities of 50 most vulnerable IDPs and their host community members in Kompina village in the Littoral Region of Cameroon following the ongoing prolonged Anglophone crisis in Cameroon”
With the ongoing and prolonged armed conflict in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon, many persons, most of whom are women and children have been forcefully displaced from their homes and communities leaving everything behind. With very limited access to formal and full livelihood and employment opportunities, most of the IDPs in Kompina make a living by offering their services as seasonal agricultural workers for local households and smallholder plantation farmers; and are paid very insignificant wages…some even fall prey to unscrupulous moneylenders who give them loans for farm inputs and collect their pay in kind (farm produce) during the harvesting seasons when prices of farm produce are still very low; consequently, they are forced to remain in the vicious cycle of poverty and hunger. This makes it difficult for them to pay school fees for their children, feed themselves and the families properly, pay for housing, and medication etc. and poses risks to both host and IDP communities that often lead to instability and social tensions. Through SELF Agro-pastoral Capacity Building, Demonstration, and Production Centre – Kompina, potential beneficiaries of this project shall receive hands-on capacity building and practical demonstrations exercises on poultry production and home market gardening techniques; and shall be supported with startup capital to establish their own microenterprises as sources of both their food basket and income.
FEMALE EMPOWERMENT
“Empowering girls and women is essential to the health and social development of families, communities, and countries"
In Cameroon, especially in the rural areas, most girls and women are relatively unable to attend school, livelihood skills training as their male peers, and consequently unable to attain their full potential and achieve their desired employment. Without an education, livelihood skills, employment, or income, most women are extremely vulnerable to poverty, abuse, and gender-based violence. Some dishonest persons continue to traffic many young rural girls to the major cities of Cameroon to serve as sales girls, house maids, or at times prostitutes in brothels. This often expose the girls to vulnerability, gender violence, marginalization, exploitation, unwanted pregnancies, contraction of STDs including HIV/AIDS, and other social ills. Since its creation in 2018, SELF has actively shown a special interest in the empowerment of girls and women through the implementation of education, skills training, microcredits, and sensitizations/awareness creation programs and services that meet the needs and challenges of these socially and economically disadvantaged and vulnerable girls and women and prepare them for personal career and economic success. This enables girls and women to build their skills and confidence; achieve their potential; promote their sense of self-esteem; enhance their ability to make informed choices with more influence over decisions that affect their lives; and possess the rights to influence social change for themselves and others.
