Three primary and three kindergarten kids from the Bechati village, Lebialem Division of SW Region have been given tuition fee by Josephine Hartmann for the 2013/2014 academic year. The Australian based volunteer Josephine Hartmann visited Cameroon and the proposed Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary to volunteer for the conservation of the Cross River gorilla through the Environment and Rural Development Foundation (ERuDeF) in July 2012. To better understand the threats and population of the Cross River gorilla in this area, she monitored and tracked these apes in the proposed Tofala Hill Wildlife Sanctuary for 15 days. She worked with two of ERuDeF’s field guides Solomon from Besali and Jacob from Bechati and one of ERuDeF’s staff. After spending 15 days in the forest monitoring great apes, Ms Hartmann was impressed with the work ERuDeF and the forest guides were doing in the conservation of the endemic, rare and critically endangered Cross River gorilla. Being a teacher by profession, she quickly noticed the fundamental problem of two forest adjacent communities (Bechati and Besali) which she visited, being lack of education. According to Ms. Hartmann, problems such as high birth/dead rates, poverty, hunting and a host of others stemmed from the fact that most of the inhabitants are not educated. Conscious of the fact that education is a major tool in the conservation of the Cross River gorilla and that lifestyles/impressions are changed by educating young people, she decided to invest in the education of the these kids. She intends to do more as soon as she has the finances. She has equally urged her friends and other global citizens to show their love for conservation by supporting the education of kids in these forest adjacent communities so that they can become the next generation of conservation leaders.

By Asoh Bedwin