Chede Muambong Farmers Co-operative Society Ltd (Chede-Muafcoop) originates from the ‘Chede Agric project” launched in 1986 by the Muambong community on the banks of river Chede, symbol of bumper harvests. The purpose of the project was to establish a model coffee farm for setting high quality farm maintenance standards for the community in order to boost yields and prices of the crop. In so doing, the project also aimed to establish a success benchmark for diversifying into other crops, and for organising Muambong farmers into a results-oriented cooperative, dedicated to community improvement and modernisation.
The initial Chede project was legalised in May 1995 as an agricultural cooperative society (Chede-Muambong Farmers Cooperative Society Ltd, Reg. N° SW/CO/25/95/048). It covers all of Kupe Muanenguba and environs in the French-speaking Moungo region.
Another offshoot of the initial Chede Project was Chede Agric Company Ltd, which had been formed to serve as the local commercial and export arm, as well as the main source of funding for the original project. In 2003 the company was transformed into a Chede Union of Cooperative Societies (Chede Ltd) in order to serve a broader farming constituency in Cameroon, especially with respect to export marketing of produce and procurement of inputs. Chede Muafcoop and its product-specific CIGs (common initiative groups) are the main stakeholders of the Chede Union, which has become the Chede parent organization and operates as a service provider for other Chede farming entities.
These Chede initiatives, which are fully owned and governed by the community, demonstrate the practical virtues of empowering community governance to contribute to developing Cameroon and the rest of Africa from the village level upwards (with village-owned initiatives) and not vice-versa, exclusively.
Objectives
To raise the living standards of farm households in Kupe Muanenguba Division through improved agricultural production in terms of quality, quantity and diversification to other than traditional cash crops, and use net proceeds for community development projects in its area of jurisdiction.
The Co-operative’s ten-year development programme (2004-2013)
Strategic programme goal
To contribute to raising by more than 50% by the year 2008 the current per capita income of about 130 000 FCFA of the farm households in Muambong and environs and more than double it by the year 2013 through expanded agricultural production and community development efforts, including in particular construction of the Muambong-Manjo road link to facilitate produce evacuation, and a Muambong School of Technology comprising technical and vocational training centres (horticulture; general mechanics; carpentry; small business administration and information technology; culinary science; etc) in order to build up the skills necessary to implement the ten-year programme and create employment in the process.
Head Office :
P.O. Box 20
Bangem
Kupe-Muaneguba Division
Cameroon
Telephone: 237-759 08 59 // 237-993 23 46
Fax : 237-339 13 66
E-mail: muafcoop@chede.org
Marketing Office :
P.O.Box 9743
Douala
Cameroon
Telephone: 237-759 08 59 // 237-993 23 46
Fax : 237-339 13 66
E-mail: muafcoop@chede.org