Cameroon: Mandela Washington Fellows Engage Buea Youth in Policy Roundtable

As part of the Mandela Washington Fellowship Cameroon's 10th Anniversary Celebration, the four-part Roundtable Series brings together alumni, youth leaders, U.S. partners, and institutions for high-level discussions nationwide

By Boris Esono Nwenfor

BUEA, Cameroon – In a powerful gathering that put the spotlight on youth perspectives, the Mandela Washington Fellows Alumni Association Cameroon hosted a roundtable discussion in Buea as part of its 10th-anniversary and 10th-anniversary celebrations. The session on Friday, May 2, 2025, at the American Corner at the University of Buea, aimed to critically assess government policies affecting young people and generate actionable policy recommendations to be presented to the government.

The roundtable is one of four regional round tables – Buea (May 2), Garoua (April 19), and Yaoundé (May 17 & 22). The theme for the Anniversary is “10 Years of Impact: Youth Innovation, Employment, Health, and Civic Engagement in Cameroon.” The final product of this initiative will be a national policy brief to be submitted during a central roundtable on May 23–24, in Yaoundé to high-level decision-makers including government ministers, ambassadors, CEOs, and civil society leaders

Speaking during the event, Atem Ernest Lefu, Project Lead for Mandela Washington Fellows Alumni Association Cameroon, emphasized the importance of this youth-driven initiative. “We are reviewing what's good and what's not good. We'll come out at the end of the day with a policy paper where we have policy recommendations to give the government, maybe they apply, maybe they will not, but we know our government, they are going to listen to the youth,” he said.

Originally expecting about 30 attendees, organizers were surprised when over 60 young people turned up, eager to contribute their views. “The youths were eager to send what they think is good for the government to consider,” Lefu noted. “It has been a nice session and all the panellists were very detailed and we are on point so far.”

The roundtable focused on five key areas that organizers deemed essential to the well-being and progress of society: health, innovation and entrepreneurship, hate speech, youth unemployment, and community peacebuilding.

Ernest Lefu added: “One to grow any society, you need to be healthy, you need to promote innovation and entrepreneurship, you need to handle hate speech happening in the society because when you do that you are not going to get into conflict. People are not going to start fighting and we have we also talked today about innovation, we talked today about youth unemployment. If youths are employed then the society can foster so that's the whole sense behind bringing this together.”

One of the participants, Amambua Sandra, a 4th-year veterinary medicine student at the University of Buea, said the session opened her eyes to opportunities and personal responsibility.

“We youths don’t realize the many opportunities available,” she shared. “We spend too much time on social media instead of exploring what the government offers. We’ve been encouraged to step up, collaborate, and stop shying away from people in power.”

Sandra added that the session helped shift her mindset: “I’ve learned to be more courageous, to approach opportunities head-on, and to stop waiting for someone to hand things to me. This roundtable reminded us that we have the power to shape our future.”

The Mandela Washington Fellowship, launched in 2014 under the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), continues to nurture leadership and drive youth-led change across Africa. In Cameroon, the alumni association has catalysed civic participation, innovation, and policy influence.

With participants outlining concrete recommendations that will feed into the national advocacy brief, Lefu had a clear message for participants. He said: “The take-home is be vigilant, keep working, be resilient as a Cameroonian, as a true Cameroonian, find avenues like this to present your ideas to the government.”

About the Mandela Washington Fellows Association in Cameroon

The Mandela Washington Fellows Association in Cameroon is a network of dynamic leaders committed to driving impactful change through innovation, leadership, and collaboration. As alumni of the prestigious Mandela Washington Fellowship, we believe in the power of shared vision and collective action to address societal challenges and foster sustainable development.