The celebration of the 27th International Mother Language Day in Nanga Eboko highlighted the urgency of strengthening the promotion of mother tongues, integrated into Cameroonian school curricula since 2018.
The 27th edition of International Mother Language Day concluded on Friday, February 27, 2026, in Nanga Eboko, following a week of activities across the entire Cameroonian territory. The closing ceremony was presided over by Prof. Laurent Serge Etoundi Ngoa, Minister of Basic Education.
Under the theme “Youth voices on multilingual education,” this edition placed young people at the heart of the reflection as key actors in the educational future. The Minister recalled that multilingual education, which prioritizes teaching in several languages starting with the mother tongue, significantly improves learning and promotes better academic results.
According to him, mother tongues are vectors of knowledge, reservoirs of values, and tools for intergenerational transmission.
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To ensure their promotion, the government has created National Language Promotion Centers in the country’s 360 districts. Furthermore, national languages and cultures have been integrated into school curricula since 2018, with teaching tools including digital technologies.
In Nanga Eboko, performances by primary school students illustrated Cameroon’s linguistic and cultural richness. For the Minister, these actions are beginning to bear fruit. In a context where linguistic survival is synonymous with cultural preservation, the challenge now is to consolidate these achievements and encourage families to transmit their languages to children.
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