One Cameroon Initiative
Boko Haram’s Violence that first crossed the Nigerian border to Cameroon in 2013 has since then threatened the image of Cameroon as an island of peace amidst regional turmoil.
Traditional Sufi Islam in the country is increasingly being challenged by the rise of a fundamentalist Islamist ideology. Historical Catholic and Protestant churches are also facing religious competition and losing ground, mostly to Revivalist Churches. This is undermining the formerly peaceful coexistence of religions and planting the seeds of intolerance.
Cameroon is home to about a thousand religious organizations – including Christian, Muslim, and traditional beliefs – of which not even half are legally recognized. At present, 63% of the population is Christian, 22% is Muslim, 14% adhere to traditional faiths, and 1% is Gnostic. While Cameroon has no history of religious violence, the growing popularity of radical movements is now putting the climate of religious tolerance at risk – with likely violent consequences.
In the wake of increasing Boko Haram terrorist attacks in Cameroon, there is a need to guard against potential issues that may arise from rightly or wrongly linking these attacks to Muslim Fundamentalism, HOFNA addresses the need to promote religious freedom and tolerance and promote dialogue and peace messages that can avoid conflicts.
HOFNA’s One Cameroon initiative contributes to this through the training of youths to act as peace advocates, the use of social media, use of music to promote religious freedom and tolerance, mass sensitization in public places and the use of peoms and sending of bulk messages to citizens on religious freedom and tolerance.