A Medical Miracle in Cameroon

The rollout of the new malaria vaccine in Cameroon has made some Cameroonians hopeful, while others worry about its true purpose.

Written by Beng Emmanuel

Jul 11, 2024

U.S. Army medical researchers take part in World Malaria Day, Kisumu, Kenya, 2010. Rick Scavetta. USARAF / FLICKR.

On a Wednesday afternoon on 31 March 2021, the screams from twenty-year-old Moussene Flore travelled through the corridors of the Yaoundé Central Hospital, in the Centre Region of Cameroon. Her screams were so loud that a crew of nurses ran through the crowded hallway to the room she was in. There, the nurses met the grieving mother holding her dying baby in her shaky arms and on her knees. With tears rolling down her eyes, Flore whispered the name of her feverish child, who gave a feeble cry and made her last breath. Flore remained crouched against the bed, grief-stricken by the loss of her child.

Flore’s baby was only nine months old when she died. She had been battling malaria for over one week. Flore was broken, inconsolable and in complete despair. She had used up almost all her savings from her petty dress and shoe-selling business to try to save her daughter’s life. ‘She got sicker and sicker. We tried to get all the drugs. I was not ready to lose my baby. It was a difficult period for me. It still hurts. It was a traumatic experience,’ Flore told me in tears.

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About the Author

Beng Emmanuel

is a Cameroonian journalist based in the capital Yaounde. His works have featured on New Frame, The Continent, Al Jazeera, Minority Africa, Semafor Africa and Global Voices.

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A Medical Miracle in Cameroon