Cameroon's Entrepreneurs and Initiatives:

“Politics is a dirty game only for those who are dirty”

CEO, NAPOCAM

Ayafor Napoleon is an Entrepreneur from the Santa Sub Division. He stepped into the world of initiatives since the year 2000 through Timber. In this activity he collaborated with foreign exploiters who did the activity for exportation. It is from 2009 that this young striving Cameroonian ventured into the world of Small and Medium sized Enterprises when he pushed through with his own initiative with the intention of getting young Cameroonians involved as he grew and of fighting poverty along the way. Commenting on his involvement in politics he explains that politics is a dirty game only for those who are dirty. He was interviewed by Fr. Ekongang Nzante Lenjo of EDEV Newspaper. He begins by talking about his company NAPOCAM.

Ayafor Napoleon

Many people identify you with your enterprise NAPOCAM.

Yes, NAPOCAM deals with construction, road works and supplies. We deal with a number of issues in the job market. We are also in the field of Marketing and there are a number of things that we handle at that level. So apart from road work construction we do supply of equipments, office material.

Can you identify some Regions in Cameroon where you have actually been making your presence felt?  

Our main office is at Metta Quarters in Bamenda. You can also find the branch office in Buea at Molyko. I have been working all over Cameroon from the Northern Regions to the South and in Yaounde and Douala. As an entrepreneur as far as jobs are concerned.

AWICCUL Building Bamenda: A handiwork of  NAPOCAM

What can a builder get from you in terms of building materials?

We do designing and if you get to my office, you will find a Technical Director who takes charge of all products. Any work that has to be done is presented to him just like any product or service that is needed. Our services are wide and varied touching on all the domains I just mentioned.

How deep are you involved in road construction generally?

In order to get into road construction in Cameroon I had to start with earth roads. That’s what the company has been doing for the past years but NAPOCAM is now set to get into working on tarred roads.

What has been driving you forward in the way you relate with people and community?

People have the tendency of saying that politics is a dirty game but I think politics is a dirty game only for those who are dirty. I went into politics to see if I could learn something and take it back to my people. In there, I found both dirty and clean people. To me politics is togetherness and working together for the good of the people. The role of Politics is not to make people popular but to bring development through togetherness. I propose politics in which people talk not because they need positions but because they have seen something from which people will benefit if they talk about it.

What message do you have for those you are reaching out to?

To young Cameroonians I simply say you cannot sit at home and expect things to happen. You must get out there in the field and work it out. I try to do what I do perfectly and I call on them to do the same so as to contribute to the growth of our country as I am doing. It is not everybody that can be employed by the government so this should not be the aspiration of young Cameroonians. Apply what you learn in school in the private sector. When you find yourself somewhere you should always adapt and see how you can eke out a life for yourself. 

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Cameroon Entrepreneurs and Initiatives

 Thanks to EM Technology, organic farming can be done on large scale.

 -David Sama Ngoh, Director of EM Cameroon

David Sama Ngoh is the Director of EM Cameroon and promoter of Organic input in Cameroon using effective micro organisms in collaboration with EM Research Organisation in Japan. EM stands for Effective Micro Organisms and was introduced into Cameroon in 2005 promoting organic agriculture both for Agricultural Production and Livestock production. They have done quite a number of tests in Cameroon and the programme has been homologated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. David Sama Ngoh had a Bachelor Degree in History from the University of Yaounde I and proceeded to Switzerland where he did a Post Graduate Programme in International Project Management in 2007. From there he moved to the UN Office in Geneva where he served for two and half years. When he discovered EM Technology, he returned to Cameroon and has been implementing it in the country for the past seven years. While in Cameroon, he went in for a second Masters Degree in International Relations at the Yaounde University I and is presently pursuing a Doctorate Degree in International Relations at the same University. He was interviewed by Francis Ekongang Nzante and begins by stating how he made that first contact with EM Technology. 

What pushed you into this line of activity?

In the year 2000 I was in Switzerland and got to see that organically produced crops were fetching a lot of money when compared to chemically produced crops. I got to know about the advantages of organically produced crops but I doubted if it was possible to produce organically on a large scale. When I was doing a Post Graduate Programme on Managing International Projects I came in contact with EM Technologies which is producing organically and on a large scale and that’s how I began EM Cameroon.

How do Cameroonians benefit from this project?

Those who really benefit from this project are the final beneficiaries. As a matter of fact EM Cameroon is collaborating with the Government that is through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MINADER who bought on a number of occasions in 2014, 2015 and 2016 a good consignment and distributed to farmers in Cameroon. Other collaborators include GP-DERUDEP programme, a number of NGOs and CIGs and a number of individuals who buy directly either from EM Cameroon or from some of our distributors. 

How can you make those who need you get to you and how do you educate those who are yet to know your relevance? 

The Agricultural Sector in Cameroon before and after Independence has been depending on chemical input but with the advent of new technology some have come to know about EM Technology. We have been holding seminars and Training Workshops at Regional and Divisional levels. We have made quite a number of publications of Seminar Reports which we have made available to both the Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and that of Livestock and Fisheries. We have been doing quite a lot but it is true the media coverage has not been quite enough. We are in a domain without a lot of financial influence with the need to get introduced to quite a number of people on the advantages of organically produced crops. The elite in our society already know about it and the less privileged ones down there seem to be doing it simply because they don’t have the means to go chemical. 

What kind of products are farmers expected to get from you?

We deal with Agricultural and Livestock Production. We have EM Compost which is the solid version made up of animal waste and a combination of micro organisms to boost the soil. We have the Foliar Fertilizer for all green crops. We have EM 5 which is for Pests and Disease Control. A combination of EM Compost, Foliar Fertilizer and EM 5 gives you a holistic solution for your agricultural needs. We also have EM for livestock which is given to animals to drink and it in turn builds the immune system. We equally have EM Bokashi which is a feed additive which we integrate into the animal feed and into EM 5 which is for Pests and Disease control. All of these will boost the immune system of the animals and mortality will be drastically dropped. You will discover that there is no odor and that the animal will grow in weight and size.

What is the quality of the vegetable that is grown using your products?

EM products have no negative effects on the human being, and the environment. With our products, you can spray the vegetable today, harvest it in the evening and even take it and consume without any negative effects like running stomachs that you experience with chemical products. This is because EM products or EM Technology is based on natural organisms. When you look at the life span of vegetables produced using EM Technology, you notice that they have a lifespan of about nine days unlike vegetable from chemical products which have a lifespan of about 5 days. Another aspect is the quality and taste of the product. That is why products from organic material are more expensive in the market. EM Products are not genetically modified and the elite in society know the value of products from organic material. Farmers know the advantages but can produce only on a small scale. Now however they can produce on a large scale if they use EM Products. Organically produced crops are not only meant for small scale subsistence farming. Thanks to EM Technology, organic farming can be done on large scale. 

Do you have any message to aspiring Cameroonian Entrepreneurs? 

Young Cameroonians have the impression that the best can only be achieved out of the country but it’s not true. Cameroon being a country in which a majority of people are found in the agricultural domain and endowed with very fertile soils has all the growth potential for any aspiring entrepreneur in the Agricultural Sector. I will like to inform the youths that Agriculture is the brain of this country. We can give counseling to any youth who wants to get into Agriculture or livestock breeding. Young Cameroonians should not only think of doing white collar jobs. When it is well done and well organised agriculture is the same like any white collar job.  

See more at www.emcameroon.com

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Cameroons Entrepreneurs and Initiatives

 H. E. Tawah Che Crecy, CEO AURORA Building Material Company, Bamenda

H. E. Tawah Che Crecy retired from Cameroon’s Diplomatic service as Minister Plenipotentiary after over 30 years of serving the country in its bilateral embassies in the Federal Republic of Germany, United Kingdom and United States of America. Multilaterally he represented the country in various organs notably UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organisation), IMO (International Maritime Organisation), AU (African Union), UNO (United Nations Organization), Commonwealth of Nations, etc. Internally he served the country in various capacities notably piloting its successful admission into the Commonwealth of Nations, presiding over the Ad Hoc Committee on the Socio-Economic Revitalisation of the Northwest Region, etc.

Aurora Building Materials (ABM) was jumpstarted as a local building materials company and now is consolidating its end drive by putting in the Cameroon real estate market place high end low cost houses that would remain valid as Cameroon rushes into emerging nation by 2035. Under his leadership the ABM created a number of local building materials that are Patent Right Protected at the level of the UN African Intellectual Property Protection Organization. No wonder ABM has won a number of awards, including the highly converted President of the Republic’s 1^st Prize on Enterprise Innovation (JERSI 2011) and the Commonwealth 1^st Price on Enterprise Promotion (2013).  

Though in 2013 he unsuccessfully ran for Parliament in the Bamenda/Bali Constituency under the CPDM ticket, he nevertheless obtained over 26,000 votes in this over 91,000 registered voters constituency. This is by far more than any candidate of that ruling party has obtained in there since multiparty politics was re-introduced in Cameroon. Overall he is socio-politically very active, is a Christian of Amazing PCC Azire and a proud son of Atuakom Mankon Bamenda.

Tawah Che Crecy has been profiled in a number of news organs, notably CRTV (Cameroon Radio and Television), BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-18111002,) Doing business in Cameroon, http://www.businessincameroon.com/pdf/BC04.pdf etc. and of course a number of National Newspapers and on a number of Radio programmes.

The Initiative 

AURORA Building Material Company Limited

The Uniqueness of AURORA Building Material Company in Bamenda is its being almost the only initiative in Cameroon that relies completely on local materials to produce exceptionally top quality building materials that can stand their grounds and compete fairly with products on the Cameroonian and why not the African Market. Its Uniqueness is also seen in its ability to change the traditional market behavior of buyers of building materials and to equally educate them on the advantages of using Fire Clay products and other local material based products in their building projects. Bellow are excerpts of an interview with Crecy Tawah, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. He starts by explaining the way the initiative came into existence.

“This Company was conceived in 2009 and the name was given by my eldest daughter named after my late mother. The concept she and her brothers agreed upon was “the new dawn;” that very early morning ray of the sun that you will find at the North or the South Pole at three or four a.m. We worked on this concept by always trying to introduce something new and of high quality. We work using local raw materials and transforming them into high quality products. We are always trying to make people see that local materials do not mean sub standard. We have the standard products that you will find in any Fire Clay Producing Company that finds itself in the domain of building materials like Burn Bricks and Clay Tiles. We went beyond that by coming out with artistic and cultural products which have been protected at the level of African International Property Organisation.

What pushed you into creating an initiative in this domain?

First we have a large estate property of about 22 hectares of land. We approached MIPROMALO the National outfit that concerns itself with the promotion of the use of local materials and knowing that we will be building lots of houses; the question was how to have access to building materials. The question here was how to lower the cost of building materials. We contacted the Director of MIPROMALO Professor Uphie Melo now Chancellor of the University of Ngoundere and she insisted that we go into the production of Fire Clay Products. While I was travelling abroad at the government’s request visiting a couple of countries to tender invitations to them the professor visited here with some people and they carried out the first building research and that’s how we continued to create this company which does Fire Clay Products and Cement Products like Yard Pavements, Cement Blocks and a series of other things. We also have Compressed Earth Block Products; the interlocking ones using the South African concept; the Hydroform Concept. We also have the Mortar Concept in which we use a machine imported from India. We eventually got into the Quarry World because at the time there was no quarry in the North West Region of Cameroon. You can’t do large scale projects without quarry products. That’s how the concept came about and we are happy that it’s catching up.

If I come to you as a builder, what exactly am I going to get from you?

When you come to AURORA and if you buy into the Real Estate Package that we are providing then you will select a piece of land in the gated community. Our property is partly gated. The Modest Income Section is open and the High Income Section is gated and it is the kind of house you select that will permit us to know the category in which you fall. When you select your dream house, we then custom design it for you. We have architects with whom we collaborate and all you need to do is specify the number of rooms and parlours that you will need and the architect does the rest. However you can always modify the house with the architect. By the time the house is done, it can no longer be the design that we came out with. The exterior will be maintained but the interior would have been altered to meet up with the specific needs of the person concerned. What we do is that we give you options and you build the kind of house that your pocket can permit you build. The property is called Ntahtawah City located at Atuakom in Mankon Bamenda. When you look at it from Up Station it provides a great view and you will see that it’s a great piece of land. Immediately your piece of land is selected, our building arm takes control. We work with Engineers, Surveyors, Architects all professionals.

What exactly can those who need building materials get from you?

We are a Certified Local Building Material Center and the local building materials are of top quality. When you go to the Metropolitan Cathedral here in Bamenda and take a look at the Catechist’s house which is a three level building then you will see an example of what we do. It’s a three level building. It is a building done with our products and is one of the best buildings in the Cathedral Complex. Other projects we have realised include the building if the Ministry of Tourism directly opposite the Court of Appeal at Up Station in Bamenda, and the Catholic Women Association National Head Office is also built using our materials. There are a series of buildings in Bamenda, Yaounde and Douala that are built using our materials. When we sell or use our products we make sure they are of great quality. We did bring in Professor Wim Paastor from the Netherlands, an expert in the field who was in charge of Netherlands norms and he passed some time with us here. He certified our products and had a lot of praises for what we were doing.

 At the same time, MIPROMALO brought in a gentleman who manages a Clay Fire Industry in India. We look for knowledge and when ever any problem is noted with our products, we look at it and rectify it. We make sure that we continuously carry out research with an aim of improving the quality level of our products.

Can you shed light on the rock based products that your company produces?

We have a quarry and the rock that we use is one of the hardest in the North West Region of Cameroon. We received assurance in writing that the machines we got from China will give us products that meet up with standards in the United States of America. When you go into the Cement product area you will see that we introduced Yard Pavements and we had to bring people from Yaounde who were experienced in the field to spend some time with us. Where we do not know, we learn. I attended some of the classes in Fire Clay with MIPROMALO and I remember at times I was the oldest student in class. We are inviting our compatriots to believe in their own local skills. Because of high prices importers sometimes go for low quality low materials from other countries. They are happy but after a short while they run into problems. Sometimes you notice that you may buy tiles that look white and after a short while you may not recognise them anymore as white tiles. There is a difference between Ceramic Tiles that are meant for the interior and those meant for the exterior of the house. Those meant for the exterior have anti-solar rays embedded in them. Look at the structures that the Germans built. Some 150 years afterwards, they still look strong and solid but when you look at the cement buildings that we construct these days they depreciate after a short while. It doesn’t make sense when you spend more money and you don’t get the desired quality.

How do people get access to your products?

We have a web site for AURORA Building Material Company and you can visit the site and place a command for your products. That’s how we have been able to ship products to Fumban, Douala, Yaounde and other towns on the National territory. In other cases when it comes to Stabilised and Compressed Earth Blocks we take our machines to our clients and produce them on the spot as we did in Buea, in Mamfe and in other places. So depending on the distance, we move the material to you or get our machines to you and produce your material on the spot. 

With your development oriented background you certainly do not plan to stop here.

Ntahtawah City is an all inclusive package. It includes a Residential Quarter, a Business District Center, a Health Section with a Pharmacy, a Specialised Clinic, a Sports Center, a three to four star hotel, an International Conference Center and a Shopping Mall. When all of this is done, Bamenda will certainly be a wonderful place to live in. Everything has been lined up for construction to begin very soon. Once this takes off, we have an even bigger project lined up for Yaounde. The Yaounde project is about four times the project in Bamenda. Each layout will have its House Owners Association with things done in such a way as to maintain standards.  

Do you have any particular message that you will want to put across?

Irrespective of where you are whether retired or still active, love your country and come back home lets help develop this country. I was in the UK, in Germany and in the United States. I must have visited at least 50 countries but home is home so come let’s develop it. Do not admire other people’s homes and remain there. Bring the ideas you have picked from there and implant them back home. We should work hard and develop this country and leave something behind for our children when we move on. We should leave our inerasable imprint on the sands of time. Look at the Henry Fords, the Rockefellers, the Hondas and many more. 

Any activity is directly linked to the socio-political atmosphere in a country. What is your take on the crises situation in Cameroon? 

It is simple. When there is a problem, it must be attended to. The Anglophone problem in Cameroon is a reality. The earlier it is attended to, the better for the peace and stability of Cameroon. If we truly love this country then the problem should be solved from its roots and in a holistic manner. The parties involved in the crises are beginning to use hate language and this has a tendency of taking minds away from the real problem and putting the much cherished peace that we have at risk. The radicalism that we see comes out of frustration and if this is to be checked before it gets too far, then people in decision making positions should assume their responsibilities by doing what is supposed to be done.

See more online at

www.ntdestates.com

and at www.auroracoltd.com

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