Amom Charity is Launched in Bamenda
A TESTIMONIAL PRESENTED BY THE CATHOLIC EDUCATION SECRETARY OF THE DIOCESE OF KUMBO ON THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF AMOM CHARITY IN THE FRANCO-CAMEROON ALLIANCE HALL BAMENDA: TUESDAY, 03 MAY 2011
Members of the Basic Education Family of the North West Region,
Friends of Amom Charity,
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I have the singular pleasure to address all of you on this unique occasion that brings to light Amom Charity and its work. I stand here to share with you the wonderful work that Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito has done in the Diocese of Kumbo under the umbrella of Amom Charity. Someone has remarked that a journey of 1000 miles begins with one step. Amom Charity’s journey with the Catholic Education Agency, Diocese of Kumbo, is definitely one of such journeys.
On the 28th of August 2008 I was pleasantly surprised to read from Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito. Among other things he wrote as follows: “I got your contact from the Bui Family Union (BFU USA) Forum. I am running a Houston based non-profit organization with mission to provide education and healthcare services to needy kids between the ages of 4-12 years old. I received the spreadsheet you sent to BFU USA with the different schools, categories and fees which has been very helpful in doing Amom Charity’s financial projections. I will like to ask if you can be a contact through which I can get real available data about schools within your jurisdiction. We all have a common goal of helping our younger brothers and sisters. If you have any questions about me or Amom Charity, please feel free to contact me at anytime. Let’s stay in touch.”
I was impressed with his email and so I wrote back to him on the same day and said: “You can feel free to use me as a contact person for your charity works in the schools of the Diocese of Kumbo. I am sure that we will need your support very much. You can tell me more about yourself. The children you are interested in are the ones we have in our nursery and primary schools. Bye for now and God bless you abundantly.” In his next mail to me Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito introduced himself fairly well and Amom Charity as well.
On the 17th of March 2009 I received another email message from Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito: “Hope all is fine. I know you must be excited and busy preparing for His Holiness’s visit. Just want to touch base with you and ask you to please help us with some information. I have been assigned by BFU-Houston members to identify a low cost/high impact project within the price range of USD 300.00 – USD 500.00, which we want to help fund within your diocese. Can you please help us to identify and outline 3 to 4 projects that you think need urgent intervention? Thanks again for all and hope to hear from you soon.”
In response to Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy’s email, we proposed that they could help fund the purchase of a Textbook on Integrated Nursery Rhymes for all our nursery schools. Through Amom Charity the Bui Family Union in Houston – USA was able to sponsor the purchase of 110 copies of this book for our 55 nursery schools at the time, giving an average of 2 copies per school, that is, one copy for each nursery class. This low-cost project was realized on the 23rd of April 2009 when Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy came all the way from the United States of America to the Catholic Education Secretariat – Kumbo and handed over the money (220,000 Francs CFA) for the books. The books have been well utilised and still being made use of by all our nursery school teachers.
Once more, in response to the incessant request of Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy for more book projects, on the 23rd of June 2009 we forwarded a project proposal for the supply of teachers’ copies of the French and ICT Textbooks to all our primary schools in the Diocese of Kumbo. After a series of Board Meetings at the Amom Charity Centre in Houston – USA the Board decided on funding the supply of teachers’ copies of the French Textbook Parlons Français. They could not fund the supply of the ICT Textbook, since they found it most difficult to understand how children could effectively learn Information and Communication Technology without computers. Prior to this launch we I had an opportunity to go to some of our schools with Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito. Practically, everywhere we went, the pupils from nursery to primary schools either demonstrated how much they had learnt so far about ICT or asked for books on ICT. By the end of our visit Mr. Afowiri had understood the urgency of the need and so he gave me a pleasant surprise of 2,300.00 USD with which to supply ICT Books to our nursery and primary schools. We are indeed grateful to Amom Charity for this heroic gesture.
On the 22nd of June 2010, we were happy receive a package of the French Textbooks and Workbooks which came to a handsome amount of 2,394,000 Francs CFA sent by Amom Charity through Mr. Yenka Banboye Simon. In addition to this package there was another package worth 1,000,000 Francs CFA which catered for the supply of 21 copies of Basic English by Cosmos Educational Press for each class of St. Charles Lwanga’s School Roh-Bui and St. Jude’s School Ndzengwev. These two schools were chosen as pilot schools with a view to boosting the enrolment and academic performance of their children and teachers. Our understanding was that a child who was unable to afford his or her own reader would pay a meagre annual sum of 500 Francs CFA to be able to use the book in school. This meagre sum would be used to procure more readers for the school and why not books in other subjects! This time around Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito, the Chief Executive Officer of Amom Charity, has visited the two schools and observed the level of progress of the children. The pupils of the two schools are now able to read well, speak good English and continue to pass their examinations in flying colours.
On the 27th and 28th of April 2011 Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito respectively visited Catholic School Tabenken and Catholic School Binshua and supplied to each of them 126 copies of the Basic English Reader. The supply of the same reader, this time in greater numbers, is underway for Catholic School Ngondzen, Catholic School Tobin, Catholic School Melim, Catholic School Nkar and Catholic School Jakiri. En route to Tabenken and Binshua Mr. Afowiri stopped over at Catholic School Bondu and Catholic School Nfiengong-Njap where he was very much touched by the poor and dilapidated infrastructure of the two schools. There and then he promised to see to it that the two schools each have at least three permanent classrooms in the nearest future.
Together with Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito we are reflecting on a programme that will cater for the adequate education of a minimum of 500 orphans and vulnerable children in some schools in the Diocese of Kumbo, hopefully with effect from the 2011/2012 School Year.
The wonderful work of Amom Charity finds expression on every lip in the Education Family of the Diocese of Kumbo. If you had the opportunity to visit the website of Amom Charity you would realise that the work of Amom Charity has been attested by all and sundry in Bui and Donga Mantung Divisions – His Royal Higness the Fon of Nso, the Divisional Delegate of Basic Education for Bui, the Inspector of Basic Education for Nkum, the Mayor of Kumbo Council, the Mayor of Nkum Council, the Secretary General of the Mbororo Social, Cultural and Development Association (MBOSCUDA) for Donga Mantung, the Secretary General of the Kumbo Diocesan Parents’ and Teachers’ Association and the Education Secretary of the Diocese of Kumbo. Above all, Amom Charity received the traditional blessing of the Fon of Nso and the spiritual blessing of the Bishop of Kumbo on the 28th of April 2011 through Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito, who made time to visit the two dignitaries during his very tight schedule in Bui and Donga Mantung Divisions.
On behalf of the needy children of the Diocese of Kumbo, I wish to sincerely thank Amom Charity for the wonderful work they are doing in a number of our schools. We are particularly indebted to Mr. Afowiri Fondzenyuy Kizito, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Amom Charity. He has a big heart for the needy children of Rural Cameroon and through collaborating with him we have started providing adequate education for thousands of children in our part of Cameroon who otherwise would never have access to education, not to talk of a textbook. We are grateful to all whose donations enable Amom Charity to reach out in charity to our needy children. With Amom Charity we have a sure means of making their donations reach the needy beneficiaries. God sees all they do and He alone can and will fittingly reward them for their generosity. More grease to the elbows of all who are engaged in the education of the rural child!
Long Live Amom Charity, Houston – USA!
Long Live Amom Charity, Cameroon!
Long Live the Catholic Education Agency, Diocese of Kumbo!
Zephyrinus Y. MBUH, SD
Catholic Education Secretary
