Cameroon’s Anglophone separatist conflict hits economy hard

With an increase of attacks from Boko Haram, ordinary people in northern Cameroon have banded together to stop the militants from terrorizing their villages. But there are many challenges facing the local vigilante members, who are putting themselves at risk for others.

Our guest warns of a devastating crisis in Cameroon's western Anglophone regions, where for five years the military has been fighting separatists who want to break away from the Francophone country. Education has been one of the main casualties, with separatists allegedly attacking thousands of teachers, students and parents as they enforce a boycott of schools. Meanwhile, Cameroon's military is accused of killing civilians, razing homes and burning down villages. Human Rights Watch is calling for a response that focuses on dialogue and crimes perpetrated by both sides. The NGO's senior researcher Ilaria Allegrozzi joined us for Perspective.

The violent conflict in Cameroon's Anglophone regions that has engulfed the country shows no signs of abating. Now into its fifth year, we look back at the start of the crisis.

A civil war has been raging in Cameroon since 2016. Separatists in Anglophone regions want their own state, called Ambazonia.

Beijing has taken aim at its high-tech, energy and property sectors in recent months, spooking investors who were used to decades of unprecedented growth. How much self-inflicted pain can China's economy endure?

A team of Cameroonian engineers has developed smart incubators to stem the high neonatal death rates in their native country. This will allow parents and doctors to constantly monitor the health of premature babies at a distance.

Authorities in western Cameroon appealed for calm after a policeman killed a schoolgirl in the troubled region and was lynched by an angry mob.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Liberal Demorats are expected to retain enough seats to keep power, but the new administration will need to get the economy back on track while navigating regional security challenges.

In the far north of Cameroon, Nigerian refugees have been fighting desertification for the past four years. The desert advances by 12 percent every year in the region, which gets on average three times less rainfall than the rest of the country. But the UNHCR is hoping that its programme at the Minawao camp can help turn back the tide. More than 360,000 seedlings have already been grown in the nursery and planted over more than 100 hectares. Our correspondents report.

Almost three months after the Taliban swept to power in Afghanistan, the country's economy is imploding. Many NGOs and foreign companies have left, leaving thousands of Afghans suddenly unemployed. Some $9.5 billion of assets have been frozen abroad and banks are running out of money. The value of the local currency is plummeting and food prices have soared. This dire situation is pushing thousands of Afghans to flee the country. FRANCE 24's Catherine Norris-Trent and Roméo Langlois report.

Building collapses have become rampant in Cameroon's cities. Shoddy materials are only partly to blame.

As Cameroonian cities face surging demand for land, scammers make a quick buck by pretending to be land owners. When the real owners show up, evicted tenants can lose not just their money, but also their home.