There is a common saying that those who
do extraordinary things in a common manner are pragmatic. This is so because the most
accomplished people have always been their own best ally in achieving their
high standings because they do common things that command respect and
admiration. Last week end Rogers Nforgwei (Representative of Cambridge University
Press in Sub Saharan Africa) was voted Man of the Year 2017 by the Cameroon
National Youth Council, Donga Mantung-CNYC. This is not surprising as he has also
been named among the 100 Most Inspiring Personalities in Cameroon in 2017 by Yes
Magazine.The award ceremony which took place at weekend at the Nkambe Community also recorded the launching of a Youth Excellence Center in Nkambe that will serve many.
What makes Rogers different from others
is that he loves giving back to the communities.
If we go by the popular saying that a
spirit of cheerful-giving builds trust, then Rogers embodies the values that
need public admiration. The Man of the Year Award has strong connections to these
ideals, which is significantly just a spur to encourage him in the promotion of
youth activities and philanthropies’. It should be recalled that in 2016, Ndamnsah
Blaise Nkfukuh (based in Italy) won CNYC Man of the Year while in 2015 the
winner was Fai Cassian Ndi (CEO of Donga Mantung Eye Media Group which
publishes The Eye Newspaper)
Synopsis
of Rogers Nfrogwei
Rogers Nforgwei hails
from Mbabi in the Wat village. At 45 years old, he is employed with one of the
oldest and most prestigious multinational publishing companies called Cambridge
University Press in England since 1999 (18 years). His career with that company
has been prosperous during that time within the same company and today he is
Director for the Mid Africa Region (West, Centra& East Africa) since the
last 4 years. Interesting to note that he is the only Black man from Africa
holding the level of responsibility, all the way from Mbabi, Wat!
In this capacity, he
directs Cambridge business in more than 30 countries taking responsibility for
market development, overall strategy, supply chain, operations and contracting
of partnerships.
His God-fearing nature,
his humility, his bilingualism, his flexibility and his ability to
contextualize ideologies have been the strength behindhis capacity to navigate
through the varied cultures of both English Speaking and French Speaking
African countries as well as his multitasking in many other roles:
His
Trappings
He is CEO and Chairman
of one of the leading local publishing companies in Cameroon, which he founded
about 10 years ago and which is fast growing into a continental company.
He is the founding
President of DRIMP Foundation, which in seven years has provided mentorship to
Cameroonian youths nationwide through the various youth leadership and social
programmes organized by the foundation. DRIMP Foundation, being a faith based
organization, has also organized pastors’ conferences in Cameroon as well as
they have taken on the challenge of promoting of and advocating for the growth
and recognition of gospel music.
He is National
President of National Association of Publishers inCameroon. He has been
aggressive in the advocacy for publishing and quality education as one of the
ways to building a strong nation.
He is the Director of
Finance and Administration of COHEB, an International humanitarian NGO
operating in Central Africa Republic, Chad and Cameroon.
His torrential presence
in the community life of Donga Mantung Division has been unbelievable. It truly
attests to the fact that this man is a man with the heart for humanity, as seen
in the following projects
1.
Organization
of a championship tournament for boys and a heavily attended Youth forum worth
3million, 2016
2.
Donation
of text books to Primaries schools and secondary schools in the Sub Division
worth close to 10.2million, 2016
3.
The
establishment of the Home Branch WADECA (Wat Development and Cultural
Association) which is transforming the Wat village and focusing the Wat people
on unity and sustainable development
4.
Sponsorship
of a paint artist from Nkambe to Yaounde for the National Art and Culture
Exhibition by the Ministry of Arts and culture,
5.
Lobbied
for more participants and guided the proper selection of the three Youth
Parliamentarians for the Donga Mantung during the first ever youth
parliamentarian in Cameroon in 2016
6.
And
he is main sponsor of the Women football Championship 2017 in Donga Mantung,
2017
7.
Donated
900 books to promote back to school to Primary schools in Nkambe, 2017
No doubt the President
of Republic of Cameroon knighted him in November 2016 with the prestigious “Chevlier de l’Ordre de la Valeur”
When Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said:
“Lives of great men all remind us, we can make our lives sublime, and, departing,
leave behind us, footprints on the sands of time” he was talking about the
likes of Rogers Nforgwei, who has engaged in promoting youth talents. In fact,
his contributions to building others can only be captured by Thomas Carlyle who
emphasized that ‘Man is only truly great when he acts from his passions’. The
name Rogers Nforgwei is gradually becoming a household name in Donga Mantung
Division not only among the hard-to-reach and underserved segments of the
population but also within political circles.
Like Bill Copeland he believes that ‘the
trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down
the field and never score’ surely Rogers’ direction is to score a political
goal.
When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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