Introduction

Soppo-Likoko is a village situated in the Sub Division of Buea. The village is located approximately 3,00 km from Great Soppo, 4,2 km to Small Soppo and 8 km to the University of Buea. Great- and Small Soppo including many other villages form the entirety of Buea, which has a population of about 180.000 people. The Town of Buea is historic town located at the foot and eastern slopes of Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in West and Central Africa. It was the capital of German Kamerun during German colonial rule, the capital of Southern Cameroon under British colonial rule, the capital of the Federated State of West Cameroon, and now regional capital of the South West Region of Cameroon.

Background Statement of the Problem

Soppo Likoko Village Community is facing a challenge for decades now in the area of childbirth as pregnant women travel on foot for kilometres to urban towns to deliver their babies. Due to the lack of a clinic and the long distances involve, little Emilia who gave birth at home to a baby girl two months ago acts a point of inspiration for us to write this project.

Sources of Livelihood:

Families in the village are involved in small-scale agriculture by producing various crops with the hope of selling some when there is excess of production in local markets. These agricultural activities are supported by some of the village children as they tend to give a helping hand to their parents during the holiday season. The people of Soppo-Likoko village face other challenges ranging from lack of good roads for the transportation of farm products to the surrounding local markets, transportation of sick people to hospitals, etc.

Sources of Livelihood:

Project Aim:

The project idea is to construct with local materials a clinic using Eco-Build Sandbag Technology or cement blocks where pregnant women can have their deliveries. During pregnancies, the women will also need a doula to help prepare them through the whole process and to support them emotionally.

Project Implementation & Management Strategy:

There is a Community Network in Soppo-Likoko that will ensure full participation of community at different stages of the project and will also seek technical advice from experts. The project will be implemented over a period of two months. However, the day-to-day management of the project will be the responsibility of the Soppo-Likoko Village Community.

Community Participation:

• Contribution of man-power by the Community
• Clearing the project site
• Educating the community members on how to build using local materials
• Community network that will ensure the sustainability of the project and also keep the clinic clean.

The benefits of the project lie not only in providing a clinic to the villagers but also in the following:

• Improving the villagers’ health standards as the clinic will have a doula that will support pregnant women    through health and social issues.
• Providing a clinic for the villagers so that pregnant women will no longer travel long distances for childbirth.
• The project will also serve as a prototype to be replicated in other neighboring villages and districts that have    similar challenges.

Sustainability:

The sustainability of the Soppo-Likoko Clinic is based on the following:

• Contribution from the community members. The Village Council will mobilize the community to form a    committee that will oversee the overall running of the project. This committee will also be responsible for    collecting regular fees from its members to be used in maintaining the building. The clinic project will not    serve    as a means to generate funds for the village’s other activities. The fees that will be collected will be    used solely for maintenance purposes.

Estimated Project Value: - What we are looking for:

• Cost of construction including clinic equipment
• Gross Floor Area: 120,56 m2 x 350€ /m2 = 42,196 €