From Bafoussam, our correspondent Emmanuel Jules Ntap reports on a humanitarian initiative that has restored freedom to dozens of young inmates.

This year, the Françoise Puene Freedom Foundation—a local NGO—stepped in to cover the financial burdens of 38 young detainees, aged 16 to 28, enabling them to settle their body constraint debts and regain their liberty.

Since 2014, this marks the eighth intervention by the foundation, which focuses on both humanitarian relief and legal assistance for indigent prisoners across Cameroon.

« We observed that Bafoussam Central Prison was predominantly overcrowded with young offenders—some as young as 17 or 18, with a maximum age of 28 », explains Françoise Puene, the foundation’s president.

The obligation to pay body constraint fees upon release is a major factor contributing to prison overcrowding in Cameroon.

« Our prisons are severely overpopulated. Many inmates cannot afford to settle their financial obligations, trapping them behind bars even after completing their sentences », admits Adray Epente Tazeu, Secretary-General of the Western Region’s governor’s services.

« I’m truly relieved—finally free after nine months instead of six », shares Efred Ngayeu, a former inmate whose sentence was extended due to unpaid fees.

Under Cameroon’s Penal Procedure Code, convicts must fulfill financial penalties or restitutions once their imprisonment term concludes.

The 38 newly freed individuals from Bafoussam had body constraint debts ranging from 40,000 to 150,000 Central African francs—approximately €60 to €228.