representatives from the Adamawa, East, North and Far North Regions, public
administrations (MINEPAT, MINATD, MINAS, MINPROFF, MINJUSTICE), NGOs and Civil
Society Organisations (IMC, ALDEPA, ASSEJA) regarding the protection of children in
emergency humanitarian situations. Following this training, these stakeholders developed
a plan of action targeting children associated with, or recruited into armed forces/groups,
notably comprising of:
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identifying and registering children who quit armed forces/groups;
organizing their temporal reception;
holding interviews with these children;
referring them to emergency centres;
searching for their families;
psycho-social and healthcare or otherwise.
This plan of intervention will enable a better coordination of actions carried out in this
domain by the various stakeholders concerned. This will eventually lead to responses that
are more appropriate, coherent and efficient, within the context of humanitarian
emergency.
c) Refugee and Displaced Children (Art. 23)
Since 2009, due to the fight against the Islamic sect Boko Haram in Nigeria, Cameroon
has recorded, particularly in the Far North and Adamawa Regions, a growing number of
Nigerian refugees, mostly made up of women and children. Also, the situation of political
instability currently prevailing in the Central African Republic has led to the displacement
of persons towards Cameroon. About 90 000 Central African refugees were received in
2014. The continuous flow of Central African refugees in the East of Cameroon has called
for the mobilisation of all development partners to address the humanitarian emergency.
Since January 2014, 122 915 new refugees were received, taking the total number up to
220 949, including 170 394 children (67% of the refugee population). 64 015 refugees live
in developed sites and 156 834 live out of them, making it difficult to monitor the latter
group.
Regarding asylum-seeking children and refugee children, Cameroon took necessary
measures to protect these categories of children, in accordance with the ACRWC. At the
legal level, mention could be made of the following instruments:
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Decree No. 2011/389 of 28 November 2011 on the organization and functioning of
refugee management bodies (Refugee Status Eligibility Commission and the Refugee
Appeals Commission);
Orders No. 0013/DIPL/CAB and No. 0014/DIPL/CAB of 6 August 2012 on the
composition and appointment of the members of these Commissions;
Order No. 269 of 13 March 2014 to set up an Ad Hoc Inter-Ministerial Committee in
charge of managing emergency situations involving refugees in Cameroon.
Other actions were equally carried out, including:
- the development of a strategic plan for humanitarian response in Cameroon, launched
by the United Nations System in Cameroon, aiming at mobilizing 48.5 million dollars
between 2014 and 2016;
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