SIMS® (Scholar Information Management System) an AI-powered innovative learning and school management app designed to provide learners , educators and administrators  with a single robust, secure and integrated system to create blended or personalized  and remote learning accessible 24/7 anytime anywhere.

The app currently comprises two major features, with dozens of
functionalities in each.  SIMS® simulates a real-world class room, where students can login
and get classes and lectures, and teachers upload videos and lectures so that students in
every classes can study and be promoted to the next class, just like it is done in a normal
classroom scenario.

1. The SIMS® Learner simulates the traditional classroom with features built to enable the same
   teacher-student exchange. Here, learners login and get access to lectures through videos
   and notes uploaded by teacher; get evaluated and promoted to the next class.
   Providing school programmes like Cameroon General Education Exams( G.C.E), Baccalaureate, University Degree programs in rich content, a built-in networking for teacher-student interactions, file
   sharing and assignment grading has been ensured, with a live chat room.
2. The SIMS® Manager, on its part, is a secure efficient management portal for schools to
   manage invoices and auto reconcile fees payment, with other operations like timetables and
   report card generations, fees collection, a database of all teachers and students, also including
   communication facilities. The App has been tested, and is currently being used by two schools
   with proof of efficiency. The SIMS project will improve on education for learners, as well as
   support and develop teachers. It will also collect the definitive data set on education in Africa
   for better policies.
   The first version of the learning platform (SIMS®) was launched in 2017 in an effort to lend an
   intervening arm in the education problem caused by the Anglophone crisis in the Northwest
   and Southwest regions. It was however, put on hold due to insufficient funding and the lack of
   qualified human resource, which unfortunately is still the case.

It is to be noted that the SIMS® project is a community project and flagship product of VTC
which recently won a 5000 USD in seed funding from Tony Elumelu Foundation 2019, and also won West Africa’s Innovation Awards 2019; AWARD CATEGORY: Most Customer- Focused Digital Marketing Company of the Year, ICT Leadership Category.

As we fight the coronavirus pandemic, it is there-for open for every interested party; be it volunteers, angel investors or goodwill ambassadors to join the already existing team, who are doing everything possible not to only beat the current crisis by bringing education beyond
walls through SIMS®, but also contributing in achieving United Nation’s SDG4 (Sustainable Development Goal four): Quality Education, not only for Cameroon but Africa and beyond.

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By

MAKAMTE TCHENTE GARAUDIE ARMELLE

E-mail :garaudietchent@yahoo.fr   Tel:237 696 386 525 Hebei University of Technology Tianjin, China

Supervised by Professor Li Jinhai 李金海

For the last three decades, the Chinese economy has multiplied it GDP by 15. In order to maintain a strong home economic growth and insure a constant supply of raw material and energy, China turned towards the African continent by quickly and firmly multiplying its foreign direct investments during the last ten years. By becoming the second largest business partner of Cameroon, as well as a strategic investor, a financial supplier and associated for the development; China has now overturned the balance of powers which had been established since the decolonization of Cameroon.

Figure 1: visit of Chinese firm in southern region of Cameroon

Chinese presence in Cameroon: China, a « new » partner of Cameroon?

The encounter of two dreams: rapid economic growth (with China as a model) and economic expansion (to meet the needs of the biggest economy in the world)

Chinese influence on forest Governance

China, main destination of timber from Cameroon (for round logs, 500,000 cubic meters on a total export of 700,000). China not (yet?) part of the ongoing Voluntary Partnership Agreement discussion aiming at production and trade of legal wood  China, main destination for timber with illegal or suspicious origin « Chinese » companies involved in illegal or controversial logging

Figure 2: Proportions of informal and formal timber production in Central Africa including Cameroon

This figure shows that the number of informal timbers produce in Cameroon is more than the formal one due to the week management system affected by bribery and corruption by Chinese companies.

Chinese investments in other sectors and forestry Increased presence of Chinese investments in the infrastructure sector in Cameroon:

• In a context characterized by a poor system of timber rights allocation and monitoring

Are Chinese investments a problem to forests in Cameroon? Chinese investments are not very well known

They are growing fast, but not as big as often announced (debt, investments, companies’ presence, etc.)

Figure 3: china growth rate inflation since cooperation with Cameroon

They are part of a partnership between well experienced firms/State and a weak State (weak norms, poor environmental and social standards, limited capacity of monitoring)

They reveal the weak capacity of the State Impact on forest governance. No direct impact of large Chinese companies on forest governance in Cameroon

No major logging company holding title “Companies” in the or infrastructure sectors are indirectly responsible of intensive logging and forest conversion Small « Chinese » companies involved in logging with no permit, including of protected species The major impact seems to be caused by the capacity of the Government to appropriately allocate and monitor timber rights (It never happened with this magnitude in such a short term)

Targeting Chinese Investments alone will not resolve the problem The main lesson learned from Chinese investments’ impact on the forestry sector is that there is a clear need to change the conditions of forest governance in the whole country, for all the actors, and not only for the Chinese

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eusMIDrir5E

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In Cameroon, divisions between the country’s English and French-speaking communities are deepening. The minority Anglophone population says it is being marginalized by the government, and is demanding equal treatment.

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