My name is Victoria Savage and I am a sophomore pursuing a major in International Studies with Peace, Security, and Human Rights concentration, Asian Studies second major, and Chinese minor. This fall, I had the honor to participate in a Virtual International Internship through the School for International Training (SIT) and worked with a women-led peacebuilding organization called Common Action for Gender Development (COMAGEND) in Bamenda, Cameroon. I worked part-time while taking classes full-time in Fayetteville this fall semester and took an Honors August intersession course so my workload would be lighter in the regular session. It worked out even better than I expected, and I was able to learn extensively about women’s sexual and reproductive health rights, policy and advocacy, and the challenges women and girls face in Cameroon during the ongoing conflicts.

The current Anglophone Crisis began in 2016 with the protests lawyers and teachers led that has turned into a civil war. The Anglophone Crisis is now characterized by conflict between the Cameroonian government and the separatists—The Amba Boys—and has increased the likelihood of gender-based violence (GBV).  Because Cameroon is 20% Anglophone and 80% Francophone and the Francophone president and administration increasingly placed Francophone leaders in the Anglophone regions, the people living in Anglophone areas see their judicial, political, and educational systems established during the British Colonial period threatened. Furthermore, the lack of peaceful communication among parties and escalating violence has brought to light how few women are involved in the political peacebuilding processes in the region and at the national level. neighborhood violence and checkpoints are common. With the violence and lack of government assistance for women legally and economically, there is a greater need for peacebuilding organizations and for women to take part in decision-making and peace processes.

The executive director, Madame Sally Mboumien, established COMAGEND five years ago to help adolescent girls and young women learn about their sexual and reproductive health rights so they can advocate for themselves in their communities and eliminate gender-based violence. COMAGEND is based in Bamenda, which is the capital of the Northwest Region in Cameroon and the center of the separatist movement which arose from the broader Anglophone Crisis. During my internship this fall, I assisted with policy brief-writing and facilitating workshops and online discussions about increasing adolescent girls’ and young women’s involvement in decision-making processes. This work enhances COMAGEND’s efforts to ensure adolescent girls know how to advocate for their rights and that women are vital members of peace processes to end the conflict soon, as well as decision-making for future generations.

Due to the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, SIT now offers virtual internships in locations that may be unsafe for travel. Thus, I had the ability to work internationally in a virtual internship where I largely communicated with my colleagues through Zoom and WhatsApp. It was not difficult to work remotely unless the internet or power was down in Bamenda (which was fairly often but mostly at night). In the beginning, it was difficult to understand the nature of COMAGEND’s work, but they were incredibly patient and understanding, giving me a lot of time and resources, especially from their Facebook, to complete my assignments and understand what girls and women think about their rights during the Anglophone crisis and civil war. I was amazed at how kind my coworkers were and that they created such a powerful sisterhood that welcomed me. They constantly checked in with me and wanted me to develop professional skills in grant applications, policy-writing, graphic design, social media, and anything else I was interested in pursuing during this internship.

I would highly recommend pursuing an internship or research through SIT, especially as an international studies major who also received credit through the U of A. This experience increased my knowledge in peacebuilding, grassroots movements, international law, international philanthropy, and intercultural communication, as well as helped me understand my working style, what I expect from an internship, and how to work with supervisors and colleagues to meet both our personal and professional needs. In the weeks before the internship began, I was unsure of whether I could do this internship because of a mental health crisis I had just experienced, but I thought joining a women-led organization and helping other women would possibly help me deal with my trauma as well. It turns out the sisterhood I experienced with COMAGEND helped me heal and they became a light in my life, even if I felt down about other things. These women impacted me professionally and personally, teaching me skills and life lessons that will help me work with empathy and courage in a potential career in international human rights law.