Reuben Moses

For two years in a row, Cameroon, beset by a civil armed conflict in the West and Boko Haram insurgency in the North, has topped the Norwegian Refugee Council’s (NRC) list of the “most neglected displacement crises in the world.” The NRC based its determination on three factors: the lack of political will among the fighting parties and international actors to find peaceful solutions to conflict, lack of media attention, and lack of international monetary aid. Indeed, in the shadows of more prominent international events, Cameroon has largely escaped attention. The sporadic news story decrying of one of Cameroon’s more horrific moments occasionally surfaces—for instance, the world took notice when government forces entered Ngarbuh in the Northwest Region and massacred 22 civilians in mid-February. Largely, however, the international response to Cameroon’s repeated human rights abuses and superficial solutions has leaned on statements or calls for action backed by few practical efforts. International actors, particularly those with significant economic or cultural ties to Cameroon, must substantively involve themselves in Cameroon’s most pressing crises and exert their influence to stop the bleeding.