By Boris Esono Nwenfor
The Nkafu Policy Institute, a think tank at the Denis and Lenora Foretia Foundation, will this Friday, October 2, 2020, organise an event on how to address the present COVID-19 pandemic in the country.
The event will unfold under the theme “COVID-19 Pilot Project Symposium: Community Engagement in the Fight Against COVID-19 Pandemic” on the online platform Zoom. It will be moderated by Dr Vera Kum, Research Fellow at the Nkafu Policy Institute.
It is expected that participants will have a clear understanding on the role of community in the fight against COVID-19; Highlight the challenges faced by the community members from adhering the preventive measures, and propose solutions that can use to address the socio-cultural dynamics caused by the pandemic.
The world since December 2019 has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and this has affected the healthcare sector including socio-economic, cultural, and the environmental systems and Cameroon which is one of the most affected in Africa is not exempt from this crisis.
As of September 30, the total number of confirmed cases of the virus stands at twenty thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight (20,838). Four hundred and eighteen (418) people have died from the virus while nineteen thousand four hundred and forty (19,440) people have recovered. Want to view Instagram stories without the risk of being caught? Try bigsta.net now Instagram story viewer
In response to this pandemic, the government of Cameroon together with WHO, prescribed preventive measures ranging from the closure of the land, air and sea borders, the respect of basic hygiene and sanitation as well as social distance.
The response strategy of the government of Cameroon to the COVID-19 pandemic has been made public through audiovisual and print media, social medial and other informal channels.
The biggest challenge remains to translate these measures to a simple, and practical manner that is clearly understood by the man in the streets.
During this webinar area of focus will be on the role of community involvement in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic; Challenges faced by the community members from adhering the preventive measures, and measures that could be used to address the socio-cultural dynamics caused by the ongoing pandemic.
The Denis and Lenora Foretia Foundation has been very active in the fight against this pandemic through its COVID-19 community project. It is imperative to use existing grassroots structures, institutions, religious and traditional rulers in the sensitisation campaign that must take into account the social and cultural dynamics of the communities to obtain significant results.
Civil society organisations, CSOs through a series of projects have been engaged in the fight against this pandemic at both rural and urban levels. According to a release from the Nkafu Policy Institute, the event is to highlight the importance of the community involvement in the fight against the pandemic and to engage both community leaders and its member in the fight against the spread of COVID-19.
