Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department is offering to people from Cameroon who have been displaced by the ongoing conflict in that country.

The British Government remains deeply concerned about the deteriorating situation in the North-West and South-West (Anglophone) regions of Cameroon. These regions suffer from high levels of violence, which have driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes. We have consistently called for restraint, an end to the violence, and for investigations into all reports of human rights violations. On 23 April, I publicly welcomed publication of the findings of the investigation into the appalling violence in Ngarbuh and reiterated our call for the Cameroonian authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice, ensure respect for human rights and redouble their efforts to resolve the conflict.

The UK continues to call for inclusive dialogue, and we welcomed the passing of legislation concerning bilingualism and special status for the North-West and South-West regions in December 2019. Commitments and legislation now need to be implemented in a timely manner to support genuine decentralisation of power and to tackle the root causes of the conflict. The British High Commissioner to Cameroon regularly engages in high-level discussions with the Government of Cameroon on the Anglophone crisis, including the mediation process led by the Swiss Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue. We continue to shine a spotlight on the crisis and raise our concerns in multinational fora and with international partners. At the UN Security Council on 12 February, the UK highlighted the significant impact of the crisis on children. At the UN Human Rights Council on 27 February, the UK raised concerns about the protection of civilians in Cameroon.

The UK is committed to supporting civilians affected by the ongoing crisis in the North-West and South-West regions and we have made a £2 million contribution to the UN response, supporting 34,000 people with essential supplies, such as mosquito nets, hygiene kits and nutrition support. We continue to call for unhindered humanitarian access to the affected population. The UK stands ready to support all credible peacebuilding initiatives and believes that the regional and wider international community has an integral role to play, including in responding to the growing humanitarian need.