According to a statement on the Facebook page of the Buea Council, Mayor David Mafani Namange Esq. received in audience H.E. Eric Tharday, Senior Adviser at the Swiss Embassy along with the Embassy’s Political Adviser, Sarah Loch.

“During the audience, the two diplomats expressed joy being in Buea, a town with characteristic features similar to Switzerland. The reason for their visit was to gather first-hand information on the happenings on the ground as regards the crisis plaguing the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon, and most importantly, to strengthen the North-South ties between Cameroon, Buea in particular, and Switzerland,” said the Buea Council.

North-South cooperation, which is the most traditional type of cooperation, occurs when a developed country supports economically or with another kind of resource a less favoured one, for example, with financial aid during a natural disaster or a humanitarian crisis.

Corporate demands by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers led to protests in November 2016. The street demonstrations later morphed into on-going running gun battles between state forces and armed separatist fighters in the predominantly English-speaking regions, leading to untold destruction of human lives, their habitats, and livelihoods. Buea has also had its fiar share of the troubles.

For a second year running Cameroon topped the list as the most neglected crisis on the planet in 2019. Three separate emergencies faced the African nation: an exacerbation of Boko Haram attacks in the north, a violent conflict in the English-speaking North West and South West Regions, and a Central African refugee crisis.

Ineffective conflict resolution, global news silence, and a massive aid funding shortfall all contributed to the country topping this year’s list. But the Swiss government is said to be championing talks aimed at ushering Cameroon out of the Anglophone crisis.

The situation notwithstanding, Mayor Mafani is quoted as having told his august guests that “life is gradually getting back to normalcy in Buea especially in the socio-economic perspective.”

“In the course of the audience, Mayor Mafani sealed a partnership deal between the Buea Council and the Swiss Government, especially councils in Switzerland, intending to boost the tourism potential of the City of Legendary Hospitality,” a statement from the council published on Facebook read in part.