FORSI FERDINAND
CAMEROON, 19
Project: Edumail
Basic Human Needs: Education
During the 2016–2017 academic year, a sociopolitical crisis broke out in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon. Forsi lived in a region where the crisis caused all schools to close, which prevented him and the students in his community from attending school. Without access to the Internet, studying from home proved extremely challenging. One year later, Forsi was given an opportunity to study in Cameroon’s capital city, Yaoundé. His friends back home, with severely limited educational access begged Forsi to use his notes to prepare for the National Exams. Forsi decided to lead a campaign to collect notes and textbooks from high school graduates who had attended school in the capital city, and distribute the materials to students in Cameroon’s crisis-affected areas. In August 2019, Forsi officially founded Edumail to support students who live in crisis-affected areas achieve academic success. Edumail has already distributed educational materials to 100+ students in Cameroon, engaging the support of students in the United Kingdom and Ghana. In 2020, Edumail plans to expand into additional countries where students are facing barriers to educational resources, starting with Namibia, Uganda and the Congo. Forsi will keep working until students across Africa can receive a proper education, which he believes is the most powerful weapon to change their communities.