ibiimu program

ibiimu is a Kom word that means water well in the local dialect.The well will provide water if we take the initiative to fetch it. This is similar to single mothers who dependant on others, but we want them to take the responsibility to do things on their own. ibiimu is a subprogram of RUDEC that was born out of kanthari, a leadership training program in Trivandrum, India. This program will inspire single mothers and orphans to take initiatives to change from within. Some of these initiatives will be training on livelihood activities like beekeeping, tailoring, leadership and entrepreneur skills.They learn to challenge the beliefs that single mothers, widows and orphans practice witchcraft and prostitution, and are lazy and useless.

Cameroon is in the centre of sub-Saharan Africa where single mothers go through socio-economic and health challenges. These single mothers do not have financial means or education to support themselves. In Cameroon, about 27.5% of young women (aged 20–24) gave birth before age 18 (UNAIDS, UNICEF report 2016). These women often do not have knowledge about sexual and reproductive health and are therefore forced into marriages and, at times, raped. This is the case in the villages around Belo where this project will be carried out. This program focuses on the prevention, empowerment and advocacy of single mothers, widows and orphans. We empower women, youth and orphans to draw knowledge from our centre as they would draw water from a well. Ideas for change need to come from within these communities, and we work with them from identification to implementation. Together, we can create a world where everyone has equal access to the well.

Aims

Empowering women by training them on how to build a sustainable livelihood through activities like agriculture, sewing, handicraft, and beekeeping skills.

Creating awareness and education among young people about their sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Inspiration centre to educate and integrate single mothers into the local community and to further educate youth through creative expression, freedom, exploration, and choice.

Vision

ibiimu envisions a Cameroon where women and children are free from stigmatization and marginalization.

Mission

We are igniting passion in the women and children of rural communities through creative solutions like sustainable livelihood training to address and solve social issues.

Concept

ibiimu empowers single mothers, teenage mothers, widows, and their children through reproductive health and rights education, advocacy of their rights, and vocational training through which they become confident and independent.