Youth Outreach Programme (YOP)

YOP draws on interpersonal exchanges and printed materials to develop the skills and enhance the capacity of Cameroonians between the ages of 5 and 30 so that they might participate fully in building their communities. Ensuring the full involvement of children and youth is a key YOP theme.

YOP uses printed materials to share information.

Let’s Talk is a monthly newspaper educating adolescents ages 9-14 about their bodies and about transmission and prevention of HIV/AIDS, as well as breaking existing myths, taboos, and misconceptions surrounding reproductive health. In under a year, distribution by volunteers has increased 25% to 2,500 copies in 4 provinces. YOP has produced a French version, Parlons - en , to reach out to children in the French-speaking provinces.

YOP's ChangeMakers Project is also participatory; it engages young men (aged 18-30) in the fight against HIV/AIDS by providing them with appropriate skills and information to adjust to new concepts and roles surrounding sexuality. The goal is to empower them to take equal responsibility for behaviours that compromise their own health and the health of others. Working directly with young men from Cameroon’s 2 English speaking provinces, YOP hopes to draw on peer networks for a "multiplier effect", resulting in a collective change in traditional practices that promote gender inequality and increase the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV. The project is undertaken in partnership with Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), with financial support of the Government of Canada, through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

YOP also undertakes community-level education and development through the print medium by drawing on youth participation. Established in April 2003, the Bamendakwe Progress Library is run by a management committee made up of young volunteers who received training from YOP and VSO World Youth Millennium Volunteers. Young people were taught how to manage the library; they are responsible for all aspects of the day-to-day operations of the library including record keeping, cataloguing the books, and opening and closing the library. The library offers reference and entertainment books for both children and young adults. It is open after school and on weekends during the school year. In addition, tutoring is offered to primary school pupils and early readers by young volunteers after school.

YOP's community sports programme is based on the belief that children and young people can learn and express their inborn sense of fun and spontaneity in a sporting environment that is safe, fun and educational. Working with volunteer trainers, sessions are run in and out of school to promote social inclusion. In 2003, YOP participated in the Dreams + Teams Global Sports Festival in the North West Province, organised by the British Council. The objective is to use sports to develop leadership skills, self-esteem, self-confidence, and global citizenship in young people. In 2005, YOP hosted the first lap of a trilateral youth exchange programme in Bamenda (North West Cameroon) bringing together young people from Germany, the UK, and Cameroon. For 14 days the young people participated in sporting activities, community regeneration projects, and workshops on global citizenship and global trade. The project was funded by British Council and Connect Youth UK.

Youth, Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS, Economic Development, Gender, Children, Education.

YOP aims to increase the standard of living and improve quality of life among youth, especially those in rural areas. It also hopes to increase participation and influence of young people within mainstream society. YOP aims to advance the education and training of young people in their appreciation and knowledge of life with a view to creating interest in their pursuits and also to fostering a better realisation of the duties and responsibilities of citizenship.