Documentary: missing citizenship documents - addressing community needs in Cameroon
In Cameroon, the results of the community questionnaire shed light on the wide-ranging impacts of lack of citizenship documents.
Birth registration among forest-dwelling indigenous peoples in Cameroon remains low, yet Indigenous peoples’ participation in many aspects of public life is restricted without citizenship. One or more key citizenship documents – such as a birth certificates, national identity cards, or electoral cards – are necessary to be able to enroll children in school, move freely around the country, vote, initiate legal procedures, apply for jobs, and perform many other essential life activities. Lack of birth registration leads to disproportionate exclusion from the enjoyment of most legal rights.
This documentary was realised within the framework of the Indigenous Navigator project and highlights the implementation of a micro-project geared at establishing birth certificates to members of indigenous Baka and Bagyeli communities in the South and East Regions of Cameroon. The documentary traces the field activities of FPP’s partner, Association Okani, in realising this project and brings out the difficulties forest indigenous peoples in Cameroon face in establishing their nationality as Cameroonians and benefitting from all its advantages as citizens.
