The 15 members of the UN Security Council, which began an inspector tour with Cameroon and will visit the countries of the Lake Chad Basin affected by Boko Haram crisis, have congratulated the Republic of Cameroon on the management of the refugee situation from the conflict.

The three heads of the mission, notably the ambassadors of Great Britain, France and Senegal, as well as their American counterpart at the UN, recognized the commitment of the Cameroonian army in the war against Boko Haram and the role of Cameroon in the reception of Nigerian refugees, fleeing the exactions of the terrorist group.

The members of the UN delegation said they had come, “listening, supporting and encouraging Cameroon and other countries to meet all these challenges with the contribution of the international community.”

They also acknowledged that “the Lake Chad region has not received the attention it should have on the part of the international community. This mistake, which is also an injustice, is being repaired, “the ambassador of France told state radio and television after the meeting with President Paul Biya.

In May 2014, after a meeting at the Elysée palace with Hollande and his counterparts from the Lake Chad, Paul Biya declared war on Boko Haram while in a foreign land.  Three years later, the Coalition of the member countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin, assembled within the Joint Multinational Force (FMM) and militarily weakened Boko Haram, now called the “Province of the Islamic State in West Africa”.

Cameroon welcomed on its soil, 84,325 Nigerian refugees having fled the exactions of the Nigerian group. With the assistance of UNHCR, the country has continued to manage the plight of 190,000 internally displaced persons.

By Chi Prudence Asong