ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the role of the Peace Corps in education and healthcare in Cameroon. Those were particularly important aspects of Cameroon’s development policy, where the government spent almost 20 percent of its national budget. In 1996, Cameroon spent 18 percent of its budget on education and health. The chapter also examines Volunteers' teaching in and out of the classroom, their role in promoting communication and technology, youth development, efforts to counter the spread of HIV, and initiatives to promote hygiene and sanitation. In 1979, the Cameroon government asked the Peace Corps to increase efforts to help the nation realize its goal of bilingualism. While Strauss labeled some of his regional directors as “incompetent,” the evidence shows that Peace Corps staff did what they could under the existing circumstances. The Peace Corps’ most significant involvement in Cameroon has been in the area of the community development health project which focuses on health improvement, education, and prevention.
