[/media-credit] Dr. Nalova Lyonga, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buea, Cameroon
The following is a brief description of how we perceived the cultural and political environment in Cameroon and the effect it is having on the prospects of economic growth, democracy, and education.
Today, I look at the role of women in Cameroon.
Cameroon is a patriarchy. Men seem to complicate every single transaction within the country as they struggle for more power and wealth. Obviously, it would be egregious to claim that all men cause all the problems in society. However, when it comes to money, most men cannot be trusted. This appears to be true on a household, local and national, as well as, a poor and wealthy level.
Clearly, Cameroon is blessed with natural resources and has an enormous potential to accrue wealth and development, but it seems as if men are getting in the way. This does not mean there is no hope for development, yet, to hasten development, the achievement gap between men and women needs to
be effaced.
It will take time for men and women to approach equality in the economic sector as the divide between men and women appears to be deeply ingrained in millennia of rich culture, but I believe that with education, men will realize that women are very capable of work.
Employing women would improve the workforce quickly, probably reduce the level of corruption and provide the country with a more stable economy. Corruption festers in a non-egalitarian society and greatly hinders the prospects of economic development. Thus, there is great hope for the Cameroonian economy provided gender equality is approached.
