By Amina Hilda
More than 400 volunteers flooded the shores of Limbe, South West Region, on Saturday, January 20, to partake in the first edition of Cameroon Beach Clean-up Day, an initiative of Buea-based NGO Association for Community Awareness (ASCOA).
The event drew participants from over 10 different environment-oriented organizations in the South West.
The beach clean-up initiative, launched to combat the escalating issue of marine debris along Cameroon’s coastal areas, attracted over 400 volunteers, many of them students, NGO workers, and partners from companies and government institutions.
The shores of Limbe became a hive of activity as participants worked collectively to collect and remove various forms of marine waste.
The most notable among the debris were beverage and water bottles, highlighting the pervasive impact of plastic pollution on the marine environment.
ASCOA, in collaboration with local non-profits, has been actively involved in addressing the challenge of marine waste since 2018.
The organization says plastic pollution poses a problem not only to marine life, but to the environment as it blocks drainage ways and contributes to floods, like those witnessed in Buea and Limbe last year.
Over the years, the NGO’s efforts have resulted in the collection of a staggering 1,451,927 plastic items from Cameroon’s beaches, totaling 927 tonnes of plastics.
The inaugural National Beach Clean-up Day serves as a formalized, annual initiative to bring attention to the importance of preserving the country’s coastal ecosystems.
Speaking on the occasion, representatives from ASCOA emphasized the urgency of addressing the growing accumulation of marine waste.
The event is not only an opportunity to physically clean the beaches but also to raise awareness about responsible waste disposal practices and the need for sustainable environmental conservation.
The success of the Limbe clean-up marks the beginning of a broader initiative, as the Cameroon Beach Clean-up Day is set to become an annual event.
Future editions of the event will extend beyond Limbe to include beaches in two other coastal towns – Douala and Kribi.
The aim is to foster a culture of environmental stewardship, involving communities in safeguarding the natural beauty of Cameroon’s coastal regions.
