La coopération OMS-Cameroun et la lutte contre les maladies infantiles dans la ville de Yaoundé 1963-2019

Abstract

World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized inter-governmental organization of the United Nations, created by a group of governments of several countries with the aim of providing solutions to international health problems such as epidemics and pandemics that threaten the world. It was created through a succession of conferences and health structures whose constitution was drawn up and signed on 22 July 1946 and came to force on 7th April 1948. Its aim is to bring everyone to the highest possible level of good health, and it has progressively spread to almost all the countries of the world, including Cameroon, before 1960, Cameroon had joined the WHO as an associate member under the leadership of the Mandatory Powers, notably France and England, which were already members. It was only two years after Cameroon gained independence that relations between the two parties became official. This research therefore asks what the contribution of WHO has been in the development of child heath in the city of Yaounde from 1963 to 2019. This question makes sense because it enables us to highlight the effectiveness of WHO activities in the area of child diseases in Yaounde. In terms of methodology, we used primary, secondary and tertiary sources that were subjected to rigorous critique. The method of writing is qualitative and based on a hypothetical-deductive approach, which is a scientific method that consists of formulating a hypothesis in order to deduce future and past observable consequences to determine its validity. At the end of our analysis, we found that WHO is a major player in the treatment and eradication of childhood disease in the city of Yaounde. It defines and contributes to the improvement of the health care system through its support in the care of children suffering from epidemic diseases in the city of Yaounde. However, by providing aid to Cameroon, WHO not only contributes to imposing its principles, notably human rights, children’s and woman’s rights and gender equality, but also uses ‘’ soft power’’ to extend its hegemony and improve its image on the international scene. Nevertheless, with the participation of the WHO, much progress has been made because there has been a considerable reduction in the rate of infant mortality and morbidity in the city of Yaoundé thanks to the administration of vaccines, serum and the provision of various types of gifts to children.