Aissa Doumara Ngatansou

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Aissa Doumara Ngatansou (born circa 1972) is a Cameroonian activist. In 2019, she won the Simone Veil prize. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Contents

Life

Doumara Ngatansou is from the northern region of Cameroon. Her mother passed away when she was 11 years old, and when she was 15 years old, her father and her family decided to marry her to a man they had chosen without her consent. [5] After getting married, she decided to continue her studies. Her husband's family opposed her decision, but she stood firm. Over time, her husband became more understanding. [6]

After finishing secondary school, she worked with other women to start an association in the city of Maroua to support women and girls who suffer violence. She co-founded a branch of the Association for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (ALVF). [7] ALVF has been providing relief, livelihood and psychosocial support to women and girls affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in the region. [6]

She is an expert in gender and violence against girls and women. She is a programme coordinator with the Association to Combat Violence Against Girls and Women in the Far North Region of Cameroon and a member of the steering committee for the project ‘We are the solution - let us celebrate women’s role in small-scale farming’ run by the NGO FAHAMU. [8]

Awards

Aissa Doumara Ngatansou won France's inaugural Simone Veil Prize for helping victims of rape and forced marriage. Nganasou said she is dedicating the award to all female victims of violence and forced marriage and survivors of the Nigerian militant group Boko Haram. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameroon</span> Country in Central Africa

Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Its coastline lies on the Bight of Biafra, part of the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. Due to its strategic position at the crossroads between West Africa and Central Africa, it has been categorized as being in both camps. Its nearly 27 million people speak 250 native languages, in addition to the national tongues of English and French, or both.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simone Veil</span> French politician (1927–2017)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boko Haram</span> Central-West African jihadist terrorist organization

Boko Haram, officially known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād, is an Islamist jihadist organization based in northeastern Nigeria, which is also active in Chad, Niger, northern Cameroon, and Mali. In 2016, the group split, resulting in the emergence of a hostile faction known as the Islamic State's West Africa Province.

Fotokol is a town and commune in Logone-et-Chari Department, Far North Region, Cameroon. It is home to Fotokol High School.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boko Haram insurgency</span> Terrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Boko Haram insurgency began in July 2009, when the militant Islamist and jihadist rebel group Boko Haram started an armed rebellion against the government of Nigeria. The conflict is taking place within the context of long-standing issues of religious violence between Nigeria's Muslim and Christian communities, and the insurgents' ultimate aim is to establish an Islamic state in the region.

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Divina Stella Maloum is an activist from Cameroon. She is the founder of Children for Peace (C4P) in Cameroon. She set up the organisation when she was 11 or 12 years old. She was inspired by children who were exploited, child marriages and child soldiers. She uses cartoons to communicate with children to avoid language barriers. She is a changemaker for peace. On November 20, 2019 - World Children's Day, when she was 14, she was joint winner of the International Children's Peace Prize together with Greta Thunberg. She was one of 137 applicants from 56 countries. The winners were announced by Desmond Tutu and the award was presented by Nobel Peace Prize recipient Kailash Satyarthi in a ceremony at The Hague. The prize was 100,000 euros to be spent on their cause.

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Marthe Wandou is a Cameroonian lawyer and women's rights activist.

References

  1. "Cameroon activist Aissa Doumara Ngatansou wins first Simone Veil prize". News Africa Now. 2019-03-09. Archived from the original on 2019-03-12. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  2. "Le premier prix Simone-Veil à la Camerounaise Aissa Doumara Ngatansou". L'Obs (in French). Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  3. "Cameroon women's activist Aissa Doumara Ngatansou wins first Simone Veil Prize". www.sowetanlive.co.za. Archived from the original on 2020-08-13. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  4. "Cameroon women's activist wins award in memory of French icon Simone Veil". france24.com. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  5. "Cameroonian Activist Wins French Prize for Promoting Women's Rights". Voice of America. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  6. 1 2 "In the words of Aissa Doumara Ngatansou: "My own experience of discrimination inspired me to become the activist that I am today"". UN Women. Retrieved 2021-05-01.
  7. "In the words of Aissa Doumara Ngatansou: "My own experience of discrimination inspired me to become the activist that I am today"". UN Women. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  8. "Author Page". openDemocracy. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
  9. "Cameroonian Activist Wins French Prize for Promoting Women's Rights". Voice of America. Retrieved 2019-11-13.