The Regional Centre for the Welfare of Ageing Persons in Cameroon (RECEWAPEC) will be taking part in the Age Demands Action campaign for the first time this year.

What planned for 2008?

RECEWAPEC will conduct extensive consultations with partner organisations to select six older people from varying backgrounds. These older people will join the Age Demands Action delegation for 1 October.

The delegation plans to hold a national level meeting with Ministers responsible for labour and social security, social affairs, public health, finance, justice and the National Social Insurance Fund.

The delegation will present a list of asks, including:

• Equal access to skills training for older people. Specific requests are being made for training in mushroom cultivation to at least 200 older people, and bee farming to at least 2,000 older people by 1 October 2009.
• Improved access to healthcare for older people. Specific requests include 2,000 cateract operations and 100,000 eye consultations for older people by 1 October 2009.

The delegation

Tita Joseph Nkwenti, 64

Tita is a retired extension worker. He trains older people on dairy production and goat rearing so that they can generate their own income.

Tangie Joseph, 63

A retired telecommunications technician, Tangie now educates older people in his community. He wants to empower older people with the knowledge that he has gained from RECEWAPEC.

Fondwi Akumbu Joseph, 61

Fondwi is a retired warrant officer and certified judicial officer and legal adviser.
He has acted as president of many older people's unions and enjoys being in the company of  a group of similarly aged men.

Tandia Atondia Barnabas, 60

A teacher by profession, Tandia is helping to coordinate the Age Demands Action campaign in Cameroon. He has been a successful pig breeder and would like to teach other older people how to earn an income this way.

Bijingsi Simon, 75

An expert in livestock breeding and rearing, Bijingsi is one of the oldest of the Cameroonian delegates. He is keen to have the opportunity to ask the government for a universal allowance for older people.

Neba Comfort, 55

Neba is hardworking farmer. She grows maize, beans, tomatoes, cabbages and mushrooms, and produces seeds.

She also rears livestock including rabbits, pigs, fowl and goats. It is a lot of work for one person but she manages her farm well and it has been a successful venture for her.

Neba's strongest skills lie in farming mushrooms and producing seeds from them. She sees great benefit in mushroom farming. They are nutritious and provide a good supplement for old men suffering from gout.

Neba made a presentation to RECEWAPEC on the economic and nutritional importance of mushroom farming. She feels that it is an effective way for older people to generate their own income.