We leave Cameroon tomorrow, so it us time to look back at the last two weeks and take stock. While personally the trip has been life-changing, the project work is to educate children and youngsters as to the huge dangers HIV/AIDS presents, and, having coached some 2,000 kids over the last two weeks as well as dozens of coaches, it seems that we have done what we set out to do. I certainly don’t think we could have done much more – the days have been long and we have all kept at it with great determination and good spirit.
I expected some bad days, but there really haven’t been any. The nearest I got was on Wednesday this week when I began to feel tired after 10 long, hot days, but, right on cue, we had the best school session of the trip that morning, and the energy, enthusiasm and affection of the kids re-energised me. It’s been a huge pleasure to work with such bright, talented and characterful youngsters here, and I hope to come back one day to see how they gave developed. As I said in my last blog, Cameroonian cricket has a bright future given the amount of natural talent here.
The team of CWB volunteers and Cameroon Cricket Federation coaches have been a joy to work with. Highlights include visiting the half-finished Cameroon national stadium via an unfinished road the day after a major downpour, having a random chicken interrupt one of Danny’s post-game interviews, playing (and being soundly beaten by, it has to be said) the Cameroon national side, pointing out the many amazing shop signs in Yaounde and Buea (personal favourites: ‘What Do You Want?’ and a bar called ‘Exceptional to the Last Drop’), and the general hilarity and banter among the team. There have also been countless other funny and moving moments with the team besides these, and I feel incredibly lucky to have worked with them over the last fortnight. Our CCF colleagues have also been brilliant, and, with the CWB Ambassador, will be great catalysts for cricket and the CWB mission here in the months and years to come.
It’s clear to me that CWB can have a real impact in Cameroon. The country is sports-mad and is in urgent need of the kind of mission-driven sports activities CWB offers. HIV/AIDS is a major public health emergency here, and cricket offers an engaging way for sexual health messages to be delivered to those most at risk. While many of the kids have some knowledge of the ABC messages, there’s more to do, especially in reaching those who are not receptive to traditional teaching methods. Cricket can provide a valuable mechanism in doing this, and I am sure the coming years will see the sport rise in popularity, and an increasing uptake for CWB projects here.
I would highly, highly recommend volunteering for CWB. The projects, and working with the youngsters, are beyond anything I expected and give an insight into Africa I’m not sure would be available from other modes of travel. Certainly for the first-time visitor to Africa, I have gained more from two weeks than I would’ve from, say, backpacking. Thanks again to the team, CCF colleagues and CWB for an inspiring first – and certainly not last – African adventure.