Some 100 kids and young adults from seven communities in the Nlonako Subdivision, Littoral Region of Cameroon have been selected to be part of Voice of Nature’s (VoNat’s) project to conserve the world’s largest frog, Goliath Frog, and other endangered amphibians of the Mount Nlonako Area implemented by the Executive Director, Ndimuh B. Shancho, of Voice of Nature (VoNat) with funds from the National Geographic Society.
Selected Kids and young adults from Mount Nlonako Area. Photo credit: Sandrine Akeabeh/VoNat
The Mount Nlonako is an amphibians hot spot in the littoral region of Cameroon host to over 93 amphibians species, including the goliath frog, which risks extinction due to wanton hunting for food & pet trade, habitat loss and degradation threatened by practice of deforestation and commercial agriculture.
The 100 kids and young adults were selected in October 2022 through a quiz on the knowledge of endangered amphibians conservation and species in the Mount Nlonako Area. They will from October 2022 to June 2023 be oriented and taken through conservation education sessions on the ecology and conservation importance of the Goliath Frog and other endangered amphibians species in the area. They will also be engaged in biomonitoring activities to gather local conservation knowledge and data about the Goliath Frog with the use of smartphones. All these will culminate in the production of video reports, articles, magazines and songs and a community-wide sensitization about the importance of the conservation of the Goliath Frog amongst other.
orientation on project. Photo credit: Sandrine Akeabeh/VoNat
Nongne Robinson Dikoume from Magamba Community, who also sat through a presentation of a synopsis of the project, already pledged to an amphibians conservation ambassador in his community. “Being amongst the 100 kids selected for this project makes me a key conservator ambassador in my community. My expectations are that by the end of this project, I should be able to successfully educate and sensitize my community on the importance of conserving amphibians, especially the goliath frog, which is very much hunted in the community where I live. I should also be able to prominently engage in championing campaigns against the depletion of this species,” he said.
The conservation of goliath frog and other endangered amphibians in the Mount Nlonako Area is inline with VoNat’s mission of building a greener, safer and more sustainable planet for wildlife and humanity to thrive.
By Sandrine Akeabeh