Visionary Reports

The Bepanda Multipurpose Center (CMB) continue to multiply significant strides in its mission to support vulnerable populations in Douala.

This was the key takeaway from the first session of the center’s steering committee, which was chaired by the Minister of Social Affairs, Pauline Irène Nguene, and attended by Douala city mayor, Dr. Roger Mbassa Ndine.The committee met to conduct a mid-term evaluation of the 2025 action plan and discuss the new three-year plan for 2025-2029. Both Minister Nguene and Mayor Mbassa Ndine expressed satisfaction with the progress, noting that the center is successfully promoting the socio-professional integration of vulnerable groups. The newly adopted three-year plan aims to strengthen the center’s capacity to continue meeting these needs.In the main time,the Bepanda Multipurpose Center’s 2024 activity report highlights a successful year focused on vocational training and capacity building. The center expanded its workshop offerings from five to eight, adding fashion design, agriculture and breeding, and IT (office automation) to its curriculum.The May 2024 training session saw a total of 102 learners, with high enrollment in culinary (25 learners), hairdressing (21 learners), and IT (17 learners) workshops. Other popular workshops included sign language and beekeeping. While the tailoring workshop did not have any participants, the overall enthusiasm and participation from the community were high, with the report noting that 61.2% of registrations were for new courses.

Each training workshop consists of two modules, totaling 200 hours of instruction over four months. The program concludes with a practical internship phase where learners gain real-world experience with a local artisan. In 2025, the center organized two training sessions, delivering a total of 3,200 hours of instruction to 134 learners.However,Minister Nguene praised the center’s accomplishments, highlighting its role as a public administrative establishment dedicated to the global development and socio-economic integration of disabled and vulnerable people. She affirmed that the new strategic plan is ambitious and will strengthen the center’s ability to serve the community.”We are satisfied because the Bepanda multipurpose center is a public administrative establishment with a social character,” said Minister Nguene. “The work of the committee was very productive. The 2025-2029 strategic plan is also very ambitious. It will certainly allow us to strengthen the capacity of the center to take into account the needs of these vulnerable groups.”Mayor Mbassa Ndine reiterated the city’s strong support for the center. He described the CMB as a beacon of hope for vulnerable citizens and promised continued backing to accelerate its progress.”The CMB has made progress for a year; the center is accelerating its speed,” the mayor stated. “The city council strongly supports the center on the administrative, financial, and action plan. We will try to deploy ourselves in all these areas so that we can offer our fellow citizens, those who suffer from these vulnerabilities, reasons to hope.”for a better tomorrow.

By Henry Wana