Beba is a Fondom with several village communities that form part of the Benakuma sub-division in the

Menchum Valley The Menchum River and its tributaries drains a large area of the Northwest Region of Cameroon. It in turn is a tributary of the Benue River in Nigeria. Location The Menchum, Donga and Katsina Ala rivers all flow west from the Northeast Regi ...

of the Northwest region of Cameroon. It is about from the capital city,

Yaoundé Yaoundé (; , ) is the capital of Cameroon and, with a population of more than 2.8 million, the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region of the nation at an elevation of about 750 metres (2,50 ...

. The village is accessible by a motorable road while footpaths are used to join distinct communities). Beba Fondom residents claim that their people originated from Widikum in Momo Division. They moved to

Bamenda Bamenda, also known as Abakwa and Mankon Town, is a city in northwestern Cameroon and capital of the Northwest Region. The city has a population of about 2 million people and is located north-west of the Cameroonian capital, Yaoundé. Bamenda is ...

's Ntarinkon Quarter, then

Mbengwi Mbengwi is the headquarters of Momo Department in the Northwest Region of Cameroon, located some 22 km from Bamenda. Information The indigenous people are Meta people, to whom a few settlers from neighboring tribes like Ngie and Oshie ha ...

Village, later migrated to Ntamecheh and finally settled at their present location. Beba has a population of about 7,000 (2014) spread over the Nsoka, upper Mbekunyam, lower Mbekunyam, Ntadiabo, Muala, Mbamba, Shisong, Fombi, and Agah communities. Perhaps due to an exodus of males from rural areas of this region, over 80% of the current residents are women and children. In 1987, Beba's population was 1,504. By 2002, it had grown to 2,180 and reached 4,000 by 2009. However, some residents believe that the population is closer to 6,000. The village is ruled by a Tribal Fon and his council of chiefs from the various villages. Hydro-electricity, and methods of modern communication are lacking in many areas of this community. Villagers must move up to high elevations, to make a phone call or receive FM radio signals. In addition to traditional healers, the Catholic Mission has constructed a Health Centre at Lower Mbekunyam. The government's modern Health Centre at Mbamba is still to go operational. Most of the villages are well supplied by natural springs gushing out from the hills. At Mbamba where there is resettlement, a modern water catchment has been realized running from Ntsoboh to Shishong and can well reach Okoro.

Economics

Recent research conducted by IRR in the village shows that

cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...

, coffee and palms are viable crops. Coco-yams,

plantain Plantain may refer to: Plants and fruits * Cooking banana, banana cultivars in the genus ''Musa'' whose fruits are generally used in cooking ** True plantains, a group of cultivars of the genus ''Musa'' * ''Plantaginaceae'', a family of flowerin ...

Groundnuts and palms are currently cultivated in the village, and serve as the primary means of livelihood for its inhabitants.

References

{{coord, 6, 25, N, 9, 55, E, display=title Populated places in Cameroon