Sport as a social tool in a district of the political capital of Cameroon: Tongolo

Yaoundé, the political capital of Cameroon, is a cosmopolitan city where its inhabitants have different ethnic groups, ideologies and religions. This diversity, far from being a problem, is rather the expression of living together, despite their differences.

The Tongolo district, for the first time organised a football championship during the holiday baptised “Peace and Living Together”. This championship has seen the presence of many young people, from several surrounding neighbourhoods and even players who have played outside the country. Such a project aimed at teaching certain values for young people.

Nelson Mandela in his lifetime often said that, sport has the power to change the world. It is certainly from this thought that the idea to organise the Tongolo holiday championship was born. For those who know the city of Yaounde, the Tongolo district, located in the Department of Mfoundi and the subdivision of Yaounde I^er is reputed for its insecurity because of the banditry, drug addiction among young people, and resulting violence.

For the promoters of this championship, it is a question of inculcating to these young people civic values, to teach them the culture of peace and solidarity. Moreover, the promoters invite the young sportsmen through this not to abandon themselves to acts that are enemies to the sport such as the excessive consumption of alcohol.

The context benefits insofar as the country experiences socio-political instability. The so-called Anglophone regions (northwest, southwest) want to create their own state, they say.

Sport through its virtue can change things so that French and English speakers of the country, Christians and Muslims, poor and rich can look in each others' eyes. The Tongolo championship was able to use the sport to learn to accept each other despite differences, to live well with others. The teaching of values such as respect, the transcending oneself was at the event. Because, as an article published in sportanddev.org explains, sport provides positive results and encourages exchanges and relations between different ethnic groups. The same study also, according to this platform, underlined the ability of sport to transcend class differences.   

[This article has been edited by the Operating Team.]