1) Who is Nyandoh Paho Tadfor?
A female Cameroonian aged 29, who is passionate to see the less privileged and marginalized benefit from a healthy living and healthy environment, Miss Tadfor doesn't just advocate for rights, she empowers people to lead better lives via training, mentoring, and spreading awareness. She concretises this by inspiring both women and men to become advocates and change makers and leaders in their communities.
With focus on the rural communities of Cameroon, this 29-year-old miss is also committed to advancing and upholding positive actions in relation Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) in Cameroon and this, through the promotion of sexual education in order to increase awareness and practice via grassroots advocacy, community campaigns and sensitization programs, seminars, sports, talk shows and radio programs; all this, through the use of community radio.
Confident and poised in interactions with individuals at all levels, this dynamic lady has carried out youth orientated programs to assist and empower young school dropouts, single mothers and young widows. Some of these programs are related to HIV/AIDS education, SRHR, GBV sustainable agriculture and on solar energy. Above these programs, she has brought in some degree of change through program/projects focusing maternal and neonatal health, including fertility and abortion, STIs, and rainwater harvesting.
By working to improve the lives of women and the youths, Miss Tadfor equally indirectly and sometimes directly fights for the right to equality through participation in decision making, especially where the forces rolling back these rights are severe.
Nyandoh Paho Tadfor is Cameroon UNESCO Peace Ambassador, Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), Dakar-Senegal fellow of Cohort 14, Strategic Innovation for Community Health (STICH) INSEAD and Johnson & Johnson Nairobi-Kenya 2018 fellow and beneficiary of: Princess Recognition Award 2016, Marie-Claire N. Kuja Foundation Inc., New York and Cameroon Ambassador 2018-2019 for Young World Leader, Young World Leaders for Humanity 2018, Best Humanitarian Award D&Ksuomi Foundation. She is the Managing Director of Rural Women Development Center and holds a M.Sc in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea.
She has been engaged in so many development actions which have brought about improvement in the community lifestyle. Worthy of note is the fact that she is highly trustworthy, ethical, discreet, committed to community service, detail orientated and resourceful in completing projects and able to multitask effectively.
Growing up without a mother from age 8, Nyandoh Paho Tadfor was exposed to double as an elder sister and a mother to her siblings at a very tender age. Her drive for women/girls empowerment was ignited in her by her dad – her pillar, Mr. Tadfor Solomon (blessed memory). But then this passion had to be groomed, nurtured and fed; and this became a reality when she later on met the Executive Director of Reach Out Cameroon – Mme Omam Esther, a powerful activist who endlessly and tirelessly guided her in realizing her purpose.
2.) What fuels Nyandoh Paho Tadfor?
In the beginning, it was not easy for Nyandoh as she was not bold and courageous enough to talk and defend the marginalized. As she became more engaged and involved in community development and lobbying, she gradually began to improve her skills and abilities in advocacy. Also, reading and working with senior colleagues have helped build her skills over the years.
3.) What are your greatest achievements after all these years of advocacy, women empowerment and lobbying?
My greatest achievements have been in supporting women and men to become advocates, change makers and leaders in their communities and I have been receiving growing calls for service providers seeking community engagement in addressing SGBV after this. I feel happy and an achievement to see vulnerable and marginalized persons use these skills and serve as peer educators and moreover, they have become more self-reliant and with a better understanding of their rights as humans.
4.) Why are you so keen on encouraging the girl child and the illiterate woman in most of your work?
Little or no attention is paid towards this target group and often they are being neglected in decision making. Because of this, empowering them and strengthening their voices, enable them to contribute in decision making, build their self-esteem and their capacities.
5.) How supportive have your sponsors been?
Our partners have been supportive and engaging. Their trust and confidence in RUWDEC have been fascinating, like Oliver Twist we still plead for more funding for our programs/projects.
6.) Who is your role model?
My role model is my Late Dad (Mr, Tadfor Solomon).
7.) Miss Tadfor, where do you see yourself in five years from now?
See more persons informed and make the right decision as to what concerns their sexual reproductive health rights is my greatest future projection. Moreover, I see myself working in an international organization as a development communication officer.
8.) What are the challenges of a vibrant, smart, result-oriented and creative activist like yourself who recently returned from Senegal from a training on ways to beef up standards?
My greatest challenge has been to find a balance between blending work and my social life. I always struggle to create a time for myself but most of the time the career aspect outweighs the social part. Another major challenge faced is the issue of funding in order to get engaged in more programs on SGBV, Agriculture and Solar Energy.
9.) How is being a female uplifter with minimal funding, easy to manage in Cameroon?
It is not quite easy in the beginnings, especially if you are not surrounded by the right persons. Like it is often said, ‘your network is your net worth’. Braving the odds and engaging with persons who have gone through the path and emerged or are emerging successfully is very productive. In my early days, I felt like giving up but thanks to my mentors and coaches, I sailed through the tides. The mistake we often make is thinking that funding must be financial only.
10.) How is being groundbreaking an issue on a platform where about 80% of the actors are not human development oriented?
Well, so far it has not been an issue with us as we engaged them, first by selling the vision and thus they become incorporated and act activist too at the grassroots level.
11.) How did you prepare your energy project and a trip for the three benefactors who returned from India months ago?
The Solar energy project has as objective to build the grassroots women’s capacity from communities, on renewable energy solutions (solar energy) as a gateway to enhance participation and improve access to energy. So far over 5 women have benefited from this program – an initiative of RUWDEC in partnership with the Barefoot College. It trains women to become solar engineers and establishes local solar train workshops for local training, multiply impacts and increase outreach. The project ensures women capacities, as well as organic agriculture, is enhanced.
12.) What have they done so far, after follow-up?
RUWDEC Solar Mamas have created solar clubs and are transmitting what they were taught, to their various communities. These clubs are for dynamic rural women working to improve their community. They do this by providing household solar energy solutions, comprised of women who are committed and devoted to working for the development of their communities.
13.) What is left undone?
We still plead for more support that will enable us provide more opportunities for these women to go for capacity building: passport and visa acquisition.
14.) How satisfied are you with the output of these three energy solutions oriented entrepreneurs?
RUWDEC is very much pleased with its output and service in the community and is happy to have them as Grandma Solar Engineers. We plead on the community to give them the maximum support they need in order to achieve the objective.
15.) What is the next project on the table?
Setting up the mushroom enterprise is the next project we are engaged in currently.
16.) How do you make a perfect balance between work, school, family, and the media?
I like being on the background most of the time. That said, I’m not a media fan. This enables me to create a balance between work, school, and family. Before it was not easy to strike a balance, but gradually, I have been working toward attaining it.
17.) How weird or interesting was your first advocacy online experience with your Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Pinterest, WhatzApp, Tumblr, Instagram followers, and fans and how did you use their feedback to your advantage, by growing your audience?
My first advocacy online had timid reactions and feedbacks from friends. Colleagues and mentors helped me ameliorate my strategy. So far the online advocacy has been awesome as they have been a lot of call for actions.
18.) How has your online experience been with sister colleagues?
My online experience with sister colleagues has been beautiful. They can testify how I always bug them with questions, guides, and directions. They have become used to me always seeking an innovative solution and possible ways to improve on our synergies.
19.) While giving your best at work, who are some of the female colleagues you admire and why?
Ngo Biba'a Lundi Anne, Yonga Nelly Shella, Mum Marie Abanga, Sakwe Alice-Rein and a host of others, and this, due to their unending passion in serving humanity.
20.) How do you relax?
Cooking an especially traditional meal, traveling to rural areas, reading, playing with my siblings and most especially sleeping.
21.) What is your ICE - Inspire-Celebrate-Empower vision for young girls, women of your age and mothers who have gone on a slumber trip?
It doesn't matter how you feel, it doesn't matter how you think you are far off attaining your objectives, simply do not give up. Evaluate yourself, change your inner circle, write down your plan and work towards achieving them. Do not be in competition with anybody, above all self-love is the greatest key in achieving your dream.
22.) Any plans for the UN or AU? If yes, what significant changes will you make if you were given a chance to be a peace and gender ambassador?
As an ambassador, I will ensure there is a strict and adequate follow-up on evaluating and reinforcing laid down policies by each member country.
23.) What are some of the things young girls and women do that put you off?
Pretending to be something they are not especially the ‘Christian' ladies.
24.) How will you want the African (Cameroonian in particular) woman to carry herself?
Carry themselves with a lot of self-love and confidence. Our girls have been prone by society to think they need to impress others. They need to delete this poor mindset.
25.) What are your first steps to right wrongs, should you be named the Minister of Women's Empowerment and the Family in Cameroon today?
Improve on the budget of the ministry and ensure activities are planned from bottom to the top, not vice-versa, recruit skilled and well-trained and result-oriented personnel.
26.) What is your take on the present crisis in Cameroon? How professional and ethical are reporters with the coverage of these crises that have lasted 32 months?
Hmmmmmmmm… I think the media professionals have not been fair in reporting concretely. Their inappropriate reporting and lack of ethical journalism have contributed to aggravating the crisis. I believe the media being the fourth arm of the state needs to act as one.
27.) Is Peace Journalism an option? How much of good is Peace Journalism doing to citizens in Cameroon?
I believe peace journalism should be inculcated in the curricula of all journalism schools. Also, the rise of citizen journalism is a call for concern as they all need to be trained and equipped on reporting and not promoting hate. There is no good so far as peace journalism is concerned in Cameroon.
28.) How active or passive would you want the journalists in Cameroon to be?
I believe journalists in Cameroon need to be very active in peace journalism and fact check before reporting as much as possible as a means to kill all the hate speeches we see everywhere.
29.) As an enlightened advocate who is neither blind nor deaf to the happenings in the country, what is your immediate reaction to the present wailing of women over the crisis in Cameroon?
There will be no country without a woman/women. The actors involved should hear the cries of our mothers. The voices and cries of our women countrywide should be heard.
30.) How is this helping matters? Or are a few making profits off others' painful and mischievous occurrences?
Well, I believe the effect of their actions will create an impact shortly. Their objective is for peaceful dialogue, negotiations, and ceasefire. Their steps are helpful as it has opened the eyes and ears of the communities, national and international bodies.
31.) What suggestions would you make to the powers that be if you were a UN Peace Ambassador to help curb, if not put an end to these crises preventing business moguls from adding economic value to the country’s coffers, teachers from running normal daily routines without the fear of the unknown or stray bullets and children from building a promising future by going to school?
Suggestions to put an end to the crisis: Call for a sincere dialogue between actors concerned, and this should be led by a neutral entity. This dialogue should seek for possible solutions. After that, peace education should be introduced from nursery schools and in our communities.
32.) Any advice to the Cameroonian and African Woman within and without the continent on why and how to become a peace builder?
Mother Theresa said Peace begins with a smile. Let's learn to live in peace and foster peacebuilding initiatives both at home and abroad.
