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Serve with ABWE

Africa: Cameroon

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Region Updates

Since 2005, Fulbe refugees have been driven across the border of Central African Republic (CAR) into Cameroon. Tchadian rebels (jagina’en) have been raiding villages, stealing cattle, and terrorizing the border region between CAR and Cameroon. Children have been kidnapped from Fulbe families and held for large ransoms, because it is assumed that the Fulbe are wealthy because of their cattle.

ABWE missionaries have traveled into the refugee areas and spent 12 days among the refugees, learning about the situation and the needs. One of the comments from a village leader was, “Islam only gathers us together to pray, but refuses to give even five francs to help. We know that God is with you (our survey team) because you care and have come to see what to do with your own eyes.” There have been others who have come, the United Nations High Commission on Refugees and the Red Cross, but no help has come from them.

The needs are still very real among more than 25,000 Fulbe refugees in the East and Adamoua provinces, and this number is growing. This past dry season has compounded the situation, because it was several months longer than normal and thousands of cattle have died, perhaps as many as 100,000. The Fulbe are having to farm on land that is not theirs, and are often driven away by local villagers. If they are able to start a farm, they have few seeds to plant and the growing season is short in these areas. Along with the challenge of simple existence, they still live in danger of the “jagina’en” attacking.

ABWE missionaries plan to make three more trips to the refugee areas over the next eight months, and tentatively two more in 2008, to distribute food, blankets, sleeping mats, a few basic medicines, and most importantly the gospel message of hope. The same village chief who said “God is with you” thanked the missionaries for the food they were able to help provide on their survey trip. The chief also asked for more gospel cassettes, Bibles, and HIV/AIDS tracts. God has truly opened a door of opportunity among the local Fulbe and refugees.

If God is leading you to help financially, please respond. An estimated the cost of each trip is approximately 8,000 dollars. This covers the transport of twenty tons of supplies to the refugees, our own travel expense and housing, and a small stipend for a couple of helpers who will be going along with us.

More importantly than the physical needs are the spiritual needs of the Fulbe. God has clearly opened the door for the gospel, but there are dozens of new villages scattered along the roads that need to hear the hope that can only be had through Jesus Christ. Pray for God’s harvesters to enter the fields that are ripe; pray that the physical needs would be met and that God will open Fulbe hearts and minds to the love of Jesus Christ.