Youth Affairs and Civic Education Minister yesterday launched a series of activities leading up to the 2014 National Day celebrations.

Kye-Ossi, the border town between Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea yesterday, May 12, 2014 entered the annals of history as the launching locality of the activities leading up to the celebration  of  the 42nd edition of Cameroon’s National Day

coming up on May 20, 2014. The Minister of  Youth Affairs and Civic Education, Bidoung Mkpatt officially launched the activities in the presence of some cabinet ministers from the South Region that included the Minister of Higher Education, Jacques Fame Ndongo, Secretary General at the Prime Minister’s Office, Louis Paul Motaze and the Minister Delegate at the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation, Jules Doret Ndongo, with the South Regional Governor, Jules Marcellin Ndjaga leading the local officials.

Speaking during the ceremony, Minister Bidoung Mkpatt  lauded the peaceful co-habitation of people from all parts of Cameroon and those from neighbouring Gabon and Equatorial Guinea who work tooth and nail to benefit from the economic opportunities Kye-Ossi offers. Besides the local Ntumu and Mvae indigenous ethnic groups, the emerging town of Kye-Ossi also harbours  the Fang, Bamouns, Bamilikes, Foulbes and English-speaking Cameroonians from the North West and South West Regions. While coming to launch National Day celebration activities, President Paul Biya instructed that support be given to improve on the socio-economic integration of the populations. Indeed, 19 associations and Common Initiative Groups received gifts ranging from farm inputs, to food items and special materials to help the vulnerable and disabled people.

Special Message

The Minister of Youth Affairs and Civic Education called on the people of Kye-Ossi and those of the Ntem Valley Division and the South Region in general to consolidate values contained in the celebration theme that are intended to accelerate Cameroon’s drive towards emergence. The theme is the “Army and Nation, in synergy  for the preservation of peace and security, crucible of integration, stability and economic development.” Preserving the values, he said, will lead to the advent of the “Exemplary Cameroon”, President Paul Biya longs for. He invited the population of Kye-Ossi to be more patriotic  and to fight increasing social ills.

Other speakers during the occasion assured the Minister of Youth Affairs and Civic Education  of the determination of the people of Kye-Ossi and  the South Region in general to continue to work to preserve peace, national unity and integration  to ensure the emergence of the country by 2035. The Minister of Higher Education, Jacques Fame Ndongo talking on behalf of the members of government from the South Region, said the  Region knows the value of unity and living in harmony.  He said the population of the Region were living in unity  and  will forever continue to do so and stated that their presence during the ceremony was to consolidate the unity anthem. The representative of the elite, Antoine Bikoro Alo’o said Kye-Ossi  was an example of national unity and integration.