Accra: More than 1,000 young people and women in Yaoundé took part in a two-day Civic Tech Literacy campaign aimed at promoting informed electoral participation and strengthening digital civic engagement ahead of Cameroon's municipal and parliamentary elections. According to Cameroon News Agency, the campaign was organized by Actions for Development and Empowerment (ADE) under the My Vote My Voice 2.0 project in partnership with Afritivistes, as part of the AHEAD Africa and Digitalise Youth projects led by the Digital Democracy Initiative. The event was held across markets in Yaoundé on July 24 and 25, introducing participants to VoteCam, a civic technology application designed to enhance access to verified electoral information and foster greater citizen participation in the electoral process. Through practical demonstrations, participants were trained on using the application to access verified election information, locate voter registration centres, follow electoral processes, report election irregularit ies and malpractice, and view candidates' profiles. The app also helps users identify the nearest voter registration centres. ADE highlighted that the initiative was launched in response to low civic engagement, especially among youth and women. Despite over 8.2 million voters registered ahead of the October 2025 presidential election, ADE identified misinformation, political apathy, limited access to reliable electoral information, and low digital civic literacy as barriers to meaningful participation. The organization anticipates that the campaign will result in over 2,500 downloads of the VoteCam application, enhance public awareness about peaceful and informed electoral participation, and deepen collaboration with local authorities, civil society organizations, youth groups, and community leaders across Yaoundé. The campaign focused on young people aged 18 to 35, first-time voters, women and girls, persons with disabilities, market women's associations, and community leaders in the seven municipalities of Yaoundé. Founded in 2019, ADE is a youth-led, non-profit organization that promotes citizen participation, accountability, and community development through research, advocacy, and civic engagement initiatives across Cameroon.
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