Additional Context: This information was collected as part of The Aid Report’s original reporting, “In Cameroon, aid cuts deepen hardship as armed groups seek new recruits.” The story documents how the termination of a USAID-funded emergency response program left displaced families without food assistance, disrupted livelihood support, reduced income for small businesses, and contributed to worsening economic conditions in communities already strained by a decade of conflict.

This quote is attributed to Gaby Ambo, executive director of the nonprofit Finders Group Initiative and a specialist in civil and political rights. According to the U.N. Protection Cluster in Cameroon, many young people in the region are out of school and have few livelihood opportunities. Armed groups have long exploited those conditions, sometimes coercing youth into their ranks. The loss of the USAID-funded cash assistance and livelihood program has intensified those vulnerabilities.

Source: Devex