A chance meeting through our 2015 bursary has led to great outcomes in Cameroon
In 2015, through our bursary programme, we supported Francis Njuakom Nchii, the founder and Chief Executive of Cameroon’s leading organisation in care of older people, CDVTA (Community Development volunteers for Technical Assistance) to come to the Global Ageing Network’s biennial conference being held in Perth, Australia.
At this conference he met Jack York, the founder of Tailgate, an initiative collecting and sharing seniors’ stories and LifeLoop, a comprehensive software platform Helping senior living communities flourish.
They started talking and things began to happen….
In 2016, Jack said: “As I get older, some of my fondest memories are of chance encounters that take on a life of their own, things that appear to be random but upon further reflection maybe they’re not! Such is the case of my relationship with Francis Njuakom Nchii, Founder & Executive Director of CDVTA Cameroon. Francis and I had a chance encounter in Perth, Australia. We were put together for an educational session at the conference and I was riveted by his presentation about life in Cameroon and the horrendous way women and the elderly are treated. We spoke enthusiastically about his work for a few minutes after the session, his inspiration was contagious. CDVTA Cameroon is the organisation that Francis has established to deal with these issues head on.
Upon my return to the US, It’s Never 2 Late made a simple $500 donation to Francis, not expecting anything in return. We just wanted in a small way to honor his work. Six weeks after this donation, Francis sent me a riveting email and a heartwarming video about the project he set up – The Jack York Elderly Women’s Sustainable Goat Rearing Project in North West Region Cameroon.
Quite simply, the provision of goats to older people in several impoverished communities, enabled them to create an income and improved their diet.
This project is one of the many programs developed and administered by CDVTA. From ongoing eldercare activities to improve health and financial independence, to improving sanitation for the community as a whole, building schools and creating more support for people with disabilities, children and women in distress, what has been achieved over the past nine years has changed 1000s of lives in Cameroon.
Earlier this year, Jack returned to Cameroon, and here they share their story.
We are delighted to have been the instigators of this outcome!
Our bursary programme provides financial support to delegates from developing commonwealth countries to enable them to attend selected international conferences, and to participate in a truly global education and networking event that otherwise would simply not have been possible.
All our bursary recipients are experienced professionals, many very highly qualified, within their own countries. However, due to financial constraints, their opportunities for participating in professional networks outside their own countries, to learn from international colleagues and to share their own expertise, are often limited.
Find out more about the many programmes we are running, and have run here.
Join us to ensure that older people are thoroughly recognised and sustained to live well in an age-inclusive Commonwealth.
Donate, partner and follow us on social media; we are active on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.
You can donate to us via
- Credit card: Visa, Mastercard and American Express
- Apple Pay
- Google Pay
- PayPal
Our core patrons are:
