Story, Louvier Kindo Tombe
That Saturday morning, Ngo Beleck, a 49 year old fisherman went fishing along the banks of River Sanaga in his native Kikot village, in the Sanaga Maritime Division of the Littoral region. As he saw the river flow, he couldn’t shake off the feeling of unease that had been growing inside him for months.
“What will it look like when the water will overflow its banks engulfing our fertile fields and homes that had stood for generations,” he wondered.
A shiver ran down his spines as he pictured their village underwater.
Just like Ngo Beleck, the population of some 10 villages among them: Kikot, Mbebe, Tombi, Nkong-Mango, Binoum, Ntol, and Ndomdjengue found within 3 subdivisions: Sanaga Maritime, Nyong and Kelle, and Lekie will be affected by the Kikot-Mbebe hydropower project where operations have started already.
“So where am I going to fish now,” Ngo beleck laments.
The villages along the banks of the Sanaga River have lived in harmony with nature for generations, but the construction of the Kikot Mbebe hydro power dam seems to bring their tranquil existence to a standstill. Accusing fingers are pointing at the construction company (Kikot Hydro Power Company), and the government of Cameroon for not properly managing the early stages of the construction giving rise to misinformation, misunderstandings, tensions, suspense, and doubts.
Fractured lives: challenges faced by affected villages
Everything seemed to be moving on smoothly until the “Declaration of Public Utility” came into the picture. Traditional authorities in Tombi regret the fact that the land reserved for the project in the village was traced without their knowledge as if their opinion didn’t matter.
In almost all the villages, there is the cry for the preservation of cultural sites. The proposed relocation sites contrast with the intital sites.
“There are sending us to a locality which does not have water. How are we, fishermen going to cope?” questions Ngo Beleck. “Our gods are found in the river, now we are to leave and allow them behind, where shall we carry out most of our traditional rites?” anther worried villager in Nkong-Mango said.
One of the major worry of the affected population is with the compensation process. A farmer in Ntol village told us that “initially they told us that we shall be compensated based on international standards but today they are talking of national standards”. To make things worse, most of the affected populations have not been identified and the final compensation list is being prepared.
In Binoum village, the worry is clear, the water will rise and overflow into the village carrying along dangerous reptiles which the villagers fear might be a treat to them. “Where shall they keep the wild animals when the water will flow closer to our homes?” laments a villager.
Worth noting is the fact that in some villages, the evaluations for compensation have been done already just that as the process delays, new challenges pop up.
An example is with graveyards where the compensation commission has counted graves in some village that will be relocated traditionally, but since then the people have continued to burry new deaths which might not be taken into consideration.
Balancing progress and people
There is no better way to chat the way forward without bringing the different parties to a dialogue table. On June 12 /13, 2025 in Bot Makat, the worried villages had the opportunity to air their worries and listen to the construction company and the government of Cameroon. It was during the presentation of a tripartite community framework.
“The idea was to facilitate dialogue among the different stakeholders,” says Jean Henri Tsogo Awona, Project Manager at civil society organization, Green development Advocate – GDA.
Since 2023, GDA has been working with the affected communities so their voices could be heard. During the 2 day workshop, maps of the different villages were presented to the construction company and the government. The objective of the map is so that the people can keep memories of what their village looked like given that the project will consume part of it.
“We want the relocation sites to resemble the initial villages,” a villager in Ntol said, adding that “alternative proposals for cultural sites should be carefully examined”. They were all unanimous that fresh identification and evaluation missions should be carried to involve every other victim.
The construction company (KHPC) speaking at the workshop to present the community framework acknowledged the challenges of the communities and assured the different communities that most of the modalities for identification and compensation are still under review and would be presented to them soonest. KHPC assured them that fresh identification would equally be carried out.
The mayor of Bot Makat, Jean Pascal Nkem Nemb, who attended the workshop regrets the challenges the communities are to face but saluted efforts geared towards bringing a lasting solution.
