Floods Leave Families homeless in Babessi

By Suh Lambert, UB Student on internship
Over a hundred hectares of tilled land for the cultivation of rice, plantations, cocoyam and beans has been submerged by flood waters. The floods that resulted from heavy rains also swept away over a dozen homes in Babessi, a village in Ngoketunja Division of the North West Region of Cameroon.
    The traditional ruler of Babessi, Fon Oliver Tsodonebioh III, said the flood was caused by the blockage of some drainage that channel water from Banendjin dam He indicated that the four neighbourhoods where affected; Chui,  Mbow, Mbezoh and Abakwa. The victims have been digging through the rubble to recover what is left of their homes.

    Floods are recurrent around Nkogketunjia which is a major rich cultivation zone, known for the production of “Ndop Rice”.In October 2012, government provided relief aid worth FCFA 20 million and FCFA 80 million in cash to flood victims in parts of Ndop plain. The relief came after close to a hundred families were displaced by floods in September 2012.