Environmental Management Plan (EMP)

COTCO funds upgrade of Foyer Ngoyang

Since 2000 COTCO has contributed almost $7 million to FEDEC to help the organization carry out its mission to protect the indigenous people and the environment in Cameroon. Foyer Ngoyang, one of FEDEC’s most important projects, took a significant step forward in 2016 when its four buildings were substantially upgraded.

The indigenous Bakola/Bagyeli people, sometimes referred to as pygmies, are traditional hunter-gatherers living in the rainforest between Kribi and Lolodorf, an area traversed by the Chad/Cameroon pipeline. They face a number of challenges such as food insecurity, poor access to education and health care and a history of marginalization. In 2001, with funding from COTCO and support from Ngoyang municipality, FEDEC began providing financial support to Foyer Ngoyang, which is a home for Bakola/ Bagyeli children when their parents are away, thus enabling them to attend the village school more easily. Some Bantu children from the town also stay at the Foyer as part of a program to promote friendship and integration between the two groups.

When FEDEC reported in 2016 that the deteriorating condition of the building complex was detracting from the project’s success, COTCO decided to donate $30,000 (18.5 FCFA) for the refurbishment and upgrade of the buildings. In addition to interior and exterior paint and roofing materials, the roofs were raised to increase cooling and create more space. An unused building that was falling into disrepair was converted into a large, comfortable dining and study hall for the children.

As a result of these improvements, an intensified outreach effort and other changes in the program, the Foyer attracted and retained 120 children in 2016, almost double the number in 2015. To help children who run away to the forest to see their parents during the school year, the Foyer staff organizes field trips to Bakola/Bagyeli camps in the forest for visits.

CAO mediation results in three agreements

The project’s Environmental Management Plan (EMP) recognizes that some disputes with communities and other stakeholders may defy settlement through the regular grievance resolution process. Starting in 2011, the project voluntarily began participating in a mediation process administered by the World Bank’s Compliance Advisor/Ombudsman (CAO) to resolve a few particularly contentious disputes. The process involves a thorough exploration of the issues at hand, including a series of mediated discussions aimed at finding common ground and ultimately resulting in a solution acceptable to both parties. In 2016, among the last three outstanding cases in Cameroon two were resolved through this process, and EEPCI reached an agreement in its one outstanding case.

Settlement with Bagyeli people

“Nkuli Makeli, The Drumbeat of the Bakola/Bayeli Voice”

By broadcasting cultural and health related programming in four languages deep into the forests in southern Cameroon, a new community radio station now provides the indigenous Bakola/ Bagyeli people with access to important information. The station’s first funding came from the Canadian Consulate with additional support from FEDEC’s Indigenous Peoples Program, which is designed to address some of the cultural, health and economic challenges faced by this population.

Founded in 2016, the station is called “Nkuli Makeli,” which translates into “The Drumbeat of the Bakola/Bagyeli Voice.” It  has an effective radius of 70 km — enough to reach its intended audience of the 4,000 Bakola/Bagyeli estimated to be living in the forest between Kribi and Lolodorf in southern Cameroon, as well as their Bantu neighbors. ADEPA, the Bakola/Bagyeli community organization that helped found the station, hopes the programming will bring the two groups closer together; strengthen their connection with the Cameroonian community at large; and create a forum to discuss important issues such as health, education and culture. For many people, the station is the only way they can access such information — an important cultural lifeline.

Nkuli Makeli is led by a Bakola/Bagyeli president and employs four people. Programming is primarily educational and delivered in Bakola/Bagyeli, Bantu, French and some English. It airs during the early mornings and evenings when the target audience is mostly likely to be at home.

General Manager Ngoun Nzié Nestor is an expert in the field of community radio. His job has been to establish the station; teach the Bakola/Bagyeli how to manage fundraising, marketing, production and technical operations; and then transition out, leaving a sustainable structure in place.

EMP Reportables — Non-compliance situations and spills

The EMP includes reporting standards for non-compliance situations (NCS). The three-level ranking system is designed to provide an early warning mechanism to detect issues and help correct non-compliant behaviors and practices well before they become serious enough to cause damage. The project recorded 0 Level II or Level III NCS in 2016.

Spills

The EMP requires the reporting of all spills equal to or greater than one barrel of oil, 10 barrels of produced water or 100 kilograms of a chemical. In 2016, EEPCI had three minor spills totaling 8.2 barrels of oil. One involved a rupture of a small flowline; the other two were the result of transformer oil thefts. All oil and contaminated soil was thoroughly cleaned up, and EEPCI intensified community outreach efforts to discourage thefts.