Cameroon: The scuffle for drops of water

As she tussles to fetch water from a public stand tap, Dorothy Ebangha, 30, who resides in the city of Buea, South West of Cameroon is full of regrets and disbelief. “I come to this tap 3 to 4 times a day just to check if by some luck water is flowing. Often I go back with no water and this is new because it wasn’t the case a few years back,” says Dorothy.

In the days of yore, the cold, foggy, forested city was characterised by fast flowing streams that took their rise from the active volcanic mountain. Today the story is different. Many of the streams have gone dry. It has become rare to see water flowing down the slopes of the mountain washing sown debris from volcanic rocks.
 
Buea residents now go for miles in search of water. “It is worrisome that Buea should be cited amongst the places that suffer from water scarcity,” says Reverend Pastor Mary Nduma Wose a clergy. “In the past fast flowing streams were abundant and made life easier for women and children who had the duty of fetching water for household needs,” she adds.
 
Blaming climate change
A local traditional ruler, whose village used to have abundant water sources decades ago, says deforestation and climate change are to blame for the water shortage. “Climate change and its effects should not only be a thing for the media and big conferences. It is right here at our doorsteps. Our water resources are drying up. We caused it and it is not late to fix it,” declares HRH Chief Kaka Daniel Esowe, Chief of Bokwai Village in Buea.
 
Water scarcity is not the only manifestation of climate change in the Buea municipality. It was common to have continual rainfall for over 21 days in August, keeping everyone masked in warm clothing, trapped indoors and drinking hot tea. Today the story is different. “We now experience very long dry seasons,”  says Chief Kaka.Volcanic eruptions, deforestation and other human activities may explain the prevailing effects but climate change has contributed enormously too.
 
On the ground, WWF is testing its approach to build resilience, including awareness raising, notably through the Earth Hour campaign. WWF is building the capacity of natural resource managers to assess vulnerability and adapt management strategies to respond to the expected climate change impacts. Initial vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning point to the need for mangrove protection, reforestation with "climate-smart species," integrated land-use as well as activities to improve resource use technology.


“For those of us who grew up in the village every place was green and fresh. Very big trees, which served as caves were almost everywhere. My mother used to harvest very big cocoyams from the slopes of the mountain. It is indeed worrying that today all these seem to be tales to our own children,” regrets Reverend Mary Nduma.