A breath of fresh air at No. 84 Holland Park

Cameroon has a new High Commissioner to the United Kingdom in the person of H.E, Nkwelle Ekaney who officially handed in his letters of credence to Her Majesty the Queen on 19 October this year. He has taken up duties in London, considered the World’s economic centre, at a very trying moment when the world economy is facing enormous difficulties and challenges, and will be riding rough for some time before things hopefully get better again. The High Commissioner will be a living witness to the frantic efforts the British government is putting in place to try to revive the economy. Until things look upward again, there is definitely going to be a slow down in the economic and development assistance Cameroon receives from the British government through its development agencies within the framework of the cooperation agreements between the two countries. More than ever before Cameroon will have to rely on its human and natural resources to face the crisis hitting the world at the moment. Apart from having potential in the resources at home, Cameroon has a massive potential (material and intellectual) in the sons and daughters in the Diaspora, those of the United Kingdom included. In fact the UK has a cream of very highly qualified Cameroonian professionals in various fields which could impact directly and effectively in Cameroon’s development efforts. Here in the United Kingdom, Cameroonians through individual and collective efforts, do everything possible to help their loved ones at home either through direct remittance of foreign currency, by setting up micro businesses for family members, or creating Charities to liaise and work with non-governmental organisations back home. Talking to Cameroonians here in the United Kingdom, and it is not an overstatement to say that this is the common view of all Cameroonians in the Diaspora, it comes across very clearly that they are very interested in getting involved in the development of their country either through micro or macro projects but the hurdles are legion. Proof of this interest is the plethora of Cameroonian cultural and professional organisations/associations (The Millennium Group, Friends of Cameroon, Cameroon Forum, Cameroon Young Professionals, Cameroon North-West Cultural Association etc. etc.) now existing in the United Kingdom, all with a mission to contributing, in their own way, to the development of Cameroon. Nonetheless, the general complaint is that genuine efforts to effect some form of economic development initiative in the country is often stifled by the many hurdles and bottlenecks in place in Cameroon beginning with the excesses of the officials at the port in Douala to the unrealistic demands of the taxman in the Ministry of Finance in Yaounde. The appointment of a new High Commissioner of Cameroon to the UK is a breath of fresh air and new hope as far as relations between the Cameroonians in the UK and the High Commission are concerned. Thank goodness H. E. Nkwelle Ekaney has already stretched a hand of fellowship to the entire Cameroonian community in the UK. He is throwing the doors of the High Commission open to Cameroonians because as he said in his own words, ‘the establishment of diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom is above all to protect the interest of Cameroonians resident in the country’. Cameroonians in the UK have felt estranged from the High Commission for some time now. Here in the UK, for example, the celebration of May 20, a national day for all, has hitherto been exclusive and not inclusive as is the case with the celebration of the national days of Ghana and Nigeria, which involves their communities. Within the wider Cameroonian community in this country, unfortunately, the day comes and goes unnoticed whereas this should have served as an occasion to bring together all Cameroonians resident in this country to show the British public our very rich socio-economic, cultural and tourist values. Most of them think, maybe mistakenly, that they are not welcome at the High Commission. The task of getting the thousands of Cameroonians in the UK to identify with our diplomatic mission at Holland Park will therefore be challenging but doable. Cameroonians in the Diaspora care about their country (after all home is home) and all they need is someone who cares, to listen to their concerns as well as to what they have to offer. The creation of the many Cameroonian groups in the UK as mentioned earlier in this article, is proof that there is potential in Cameroonians living out here and it is very evident too that they crave to be part of their country’s development efforts. All they are asking for is for someone to listen to them and give them a chance to put on the table what they have to offer. In the days ahead, the new High Commissioner, H.E. Nkwelle Ekaney has the challenge of rallying Cameroonians to assure them of the fatherly role he will play to all and by the same token get the Cameroonian community in the UK to warm up to the High Commission again, for the diplomatic mission is there to serve the interest of Cameroonians resident in this country indeed. Steve Nfor