The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Cameroonian authorities to investigate and hold accountable those who attacked Equinoxe TV journalists Joseph Abena Abena and Augustin Ndongo while they were reporting in a village in Cameroon’s South Region on February 13.

“The attack on Joseph Abena Abena and Augustin Ndongo is yet another expression of the sense of impunity for those who intimidate and threaten journalists in Cameroon,” said Moussa Ngom, CPJ’s Francophone Africa representative. “Cameroonian authorities must investigate and hold accountable the assailants and ensure a safe working environment for journalists.”

Abena, a regional correspondent for privately owned Equinoxe TV, and Ndongo, a camera operator, were attacked when they went to investigate an agricultural facility owned by Samuel Tony Obam Bikoué, a controversial figure praised by President Paul Biya three days earlier for helping to create “an agricultural industry,” but whose involvement in the banana plantation sector has been criticized by a local prefect.

The journalists were attacked when they entered the facility, according to a statement from the National Union of Journalists of Cameroon and Abena, who told CPJ that one of the attackers asked him why he wanted to harm Bikoué’s business rather than investigating other officials’ interests.

Abena said that the assailants, some armed with clubs, snatched Ndongo’s camera, confiscated the two journalists’ phones, and forced them to sit on the ground while making lynching and death threats, according to Abena, who told CPJ that he had identified himself as a journalist and presented his press card. 

“One of the attackers said he knew me before he said they were going to kill us,” Abena said. 

The two journalists were released after a local official intervened, but Abena said that his computer was damaged and one of the attackers took the memory card from Ndongo’s damaged camera. 

CPJ’s calls and messages to Bikoué and Denis Omgba Bomba, director of the media observatory at Cameroon’s Ministry of Communication, went unanswered

CPJ has documented several physical attacks and acts of intimidation against journalists in recent months in Cameroon, ahead of the country’s elections later this year.

Culled from CPJ

The Cameroonian government has disbursed 2 billion CFA francs to 8,750 rice farmers affiliated with the Yagoua Rice Expansion and Modernization Company (Semry) in the Far North region. The funds were distributed by Paul Atanga Nji, Minister of Territorial Administration (Minat), who has been on a working visit to the Mayo-Danay department since February 13 to address concerns raised by farmers.

In late January, rice farmers in Yagoua, the departmental capital, held protests demanding compensation related to the Logone Valley Investment Development Project (Viva Logone), implemented by Semry. The protests turned violent, resulting in one farmer’s death and several injuries. President Paul Biya subsequently sent Atanga Nji to de-escalate the situation and oversee the payments.

“This generous gesture from the Head of State is a form of support for the beneficiaries, whose activities have been severely impacted by delays in launching the rice rehabilitation project in the Logone Valley, as well as by poor harvests during the last agricultural season,” Atanga Nji told reporters.

The first tranche of 1 billion CFA francs was distributed to 4,399 rice farmers in Toukou, Yagoua, on February 13 during a ceremony at the Tapvounda Rice Cooperative site. In addition to the financial aid, farmers also received agricultural equipment and inputs. The second phase of payments, targeting 4,351 rice farmers, is currently underway in Maga, another town in Mayo-Danay. Atanga Nji is personally supervising the distribution process.

Source: Sbbc

Calvin Zang Oyono, a Cameroonian Senator who represented the South Region on the platform of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement is dead. CRTV, Cameroon’s state radio and television confirmed this to Cameroon Concord News on Sunday 16 February 2025.

Zang Oyono was a Francophone politician who until his death served as deputy managing director of COTCO.

Elected senator three times, in 2013, 2018 and 2023, Calvin Zang was born in Nsimi in the Zoétélé Sub Division in the Dja et Lobo Division in the South region.

The late senator was a graduate of the National School of Administration and Magistracy (Enam).

By Rita Akana

A fatal road accident occurred on the evening of February 12, 2025, at 4 Étages in Bonaberi, located in Douala’s 4th district. According to initial, yet-to-be-confirmed reports, five people lost their lives in the crash involving two heavy-duty trucks and a taxi.

Eyewitness accounts suggest that a speeding cement truck collided with a stationary semi-trailer carrying iron bars. In an attempt to avoid the impact, the cement truck swerved and crashed into a taxi carrying the driver and four passengers. All five occupants of the taxi died instantly, witnesses reported.

This tragedy comes just two weeks after a similar accident at Carrefour Meec in Yaoundé’s 6th district. In that incident, a poorly secured shipping container fell off a truck onto a taxi, killing two of the four passengers on board.

Source: Sbbc

The Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR) has strengthened its military footprint in the conflict-ridden Southwest region with the construction and inauguration of two new military camps on February 7. The new installations are located in Ekona, within the Muyuka district, and Ombe, in the Tiko district, both in Fako Division.

According to the army, these camps are part of efforts to bolster security in an area frequently targeted by armed separatist groups fighting against the Cameroonian military, which remains loyal to the central government in Yaoundé.

These new deployments add to previous reinforcements in the region. In November 2024, the BIR had already set up two camps in Nguti and Alou. Similarly, the elite force has been expanding its security presence in the Northwest region, which faces the same crisis. In May 2024, the BIR established a command post in Bui, a department known as a stronghold of separatist militias. The army has conducted several military offensives in this area, known as “Operation Bui Clean.”

The security crisis in Cameroon’s Southwest and Northwest regions began in 2017 when separatist armed groups launched attacks against defense and security forces, as well as civilians. The deployment of the BIR, the best-trained and best-equipped unit in the Cameroonian military, has so far helped to contain the insurgents.

According to United Nations data, the conflict in the country’s two Anglophone regions has resulted in nearly 6,000 deaths, displaced more than one million people internally, and forced over 35,000 refugees to flee to Nigeria.

Source: Sbbc

Concerns over working conditions at Cameroon’s main sugar producer, Société Sucrière du Cameroun (Sosucam), have reached the European Parliament following a violent strike that turned into a riot on February 4, 2025. At least one worker was killed in the unrest, drawing criticism from Marina Mesure, a French member of the European Parliament.

In a letter dated February 5, 2025, addressed to the European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Mesure denounced what she called the “repression and violations of workers’ rights” at Sosucam’s sugar cane plantations in Cameroon.

The controversy stems from the fact that Sosucam is 74% owned by the French agro-industrial group Somdiaa, which is itself controlled by Castel, a major player in Africa’s beverage industry. Mesure reminded the European Commission that, under the EU’s new corporate due diligence directive, companies headquartered in EU member states must be held accountable for labor practices in their overseas operations.

Beyond what she called the “bloody crackdown” on Sosucam workers during the February 4 strike, Mesure pointed to a broader pattern of labor rights abuses. She referenced a May 1, 2023, report by the Cameroonian Sugar Cane Workers’ Union, which accused the company’s management of systematically suppressing union activities. According to Mesure, this violates internationally recognized labor rights, including the right to organize.

The lawmaker has called on the European Commission to clarify what steps it plans to take to ensure that sugar industry workers in Cameroon are treated fairly. She also urged EU officials to raise the issue with French authorities, questioning Somdiaa’s role in what she described as repeated violations of Sosucam employees’ rights.

On February 7, 2025, Sosucam publicly addressed the growing tensions, though it did not respond directly to Mesure’s letter. In a statement signed by the company’s newly appointed CEO, Jean-Louis Liscio, the company announced several measures agreed upon after discussions with stakeholders. The base salary for 2A-category laborers will increase by CFA1,000, bringing it to CFA57,000 per month. The monthly dirt allowance will rise from CFA600 to CFA750. The company’s employer contribution for seasonal workers will also increase by CFA500 per month.

Following these adjustments, Sosucam’s management has called on all employees to return to work starting Saturday, February 8, 2025.

Source: Business in Cameroon

Boko Haram insurgents reportedly attacked Sanda Wajiri, a remote village near Kolofata in northern Cameroon, late Sunday night, killing four people and setting fire to homes and food stores.

According to security analyst and counter-insurgency expert Zagazola Makama, who reported the incident on his X handle, the terrorists stormed the village heavily armed, shooting indiscriminately.