To date, 3,520 ex-combatants have been welcomed at the Bamenda, Buea, and Mora disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration centers. The figure was revealed by Faï Yengo Francis, coordinator of the national disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration committee (Cnddr). 

The disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) centers were created, in 2019, to facilitate the social reintegration of separatist fighters from the Anglophone Northwest and Southwest and Boko Haram members who want to surrender. 

According to coordinator Faï Yengo Francis, the Buea DDR center has already received 413 ex-combatants (379 men, 23 women, and 11 children), the Bamenda center 372 (250 men, 74 women, 48 children), and the Mora center 2,735 (712 men, 738 women, 1,285 children).

The coordinator points out that 100 ex-militiamen were received in the centers a few days ago: 60 in Mora and 40 in the Buea and Bamenda centers. 

For Faï Yengo Francis, the figures are encouraging for the peace process. Hence his call for the demobilization of young people still in these terrorist groups. He invited "the Northwest, Southwest, and Far-North to demonstrate firmness, truth, courage, and wisdom so that we can bring home our children who went off the right path. As long as these children continue to hang around in the forest, we will not be truly at peace. We will only pretend to be.”  

The Disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration committee was created by a December 2018 presidential decree. It is an outstretched hand to the young people enlisted in separatist militias active in the Northwest and Southwest and those fighting for the Islamist sect Boko Haram. After that decree, DDR centers were built in the regions affected by the conflicts to enable the socio-economic reintegration of these ex-combatants.

L.A.