CAMEROON INFOTREND

CATUC PRODUCES FIRST BATCH OF ACADEMIC DOCTORS

By Mildred Ndum Wung Kum

The Catholic University of Cameroon (CATUC) Bamenda has produced its pioneer batch of academic doctors. Five students merited the doctorate degree after successfully defending their thesis and were proclaimed academic doctors by a jury of professors who assessed them worthy. The defence of the PhD theses  took place from December 11 to 12, 2020. 

Promise Aseh Munteh, Fomba Louisette Naah, Kingah Bertila Mayin, Mbacham Mercy Akwi and Clement Kum Mih all go down the history books of CATUC as the first batch of students who successfully defended their PhD theses. 

The five defended their theses in the presence of a cream of professors drawn from several universities across Cameroon plus friends and family members who converged to witness the occasion.

Mbacham Mercy Akwi poses for picture among professors during defence session

Talking to pressmen during the occasion, the Vice Chancellor of CATUC, Reverend Father Joseph Awoh, noted that getting the credibility to offer courses in PhD was a difficult task given that CATUC had to work and get approval from her mentor university in this area, which is the University of Buea. Fr Awoh was however proud that the students are adorned with both intellectual and human formation which are the values of any Catholic educational institution. “We teach our students courses that ground them including The Human Person which grounds them in the dignity of the human  person,  respect for  oneself and respect for  others which are values which our community is in great need of but which are lacking almost everywhere in almost every aspect of our societal lives.   Also, as a as a Catholic University, we teach them Catholic Social Teachings which apply to issues of social life like government, hunger, poverty, workers' rights, etc which are things that should improve them as persons and improve their relationship with other persons. We have worked longer than  we had originally thought we would. Full time PhDs normally take at least three years to complete and part time.PhDs take about five years to complete  but these students took slightly longer. They are all workers.  It brings us a lot of fulfilment that we have brought the first batch of PhD students to an end but also we are extra happy that among them we have a pastor because it fulfils what we are trying to do; to bring out the best in them as far as their potentials are concerned and to bring God to the center of all that we do” the Vice Chancellor said. 

The students were also fulfilled to make a name as the first batch of  students who successfully defended their PhD theses in CATUC. In presenting their theses, they all made recommendations on a change in public policy. Mbacham Mercy Akwi who presented a thesis on the topic Safety, Anti Proliferative Activity and Cost Evaluation of Medicinal Plants Against Breast Cancer in the North West Region of Cameroon came out with findings that many women are dying because of breast cancer and because they cannot afford to pay for orthodox treatment. Her thesis established that it is safe to treat breast cancer using herbal products because they contain bioactive molecules that are potent against this disease. She recommended that government should reduce the disease burden in the country by giving assistance to tradi practitioners as well as carryout laboratory analysis to determine which plant is safe plus the dosage to administer. “I really feel happy  being among the pioneer batch. atience counts. I believe God designed it like that because eventually it would serve as a motivating factor to others to go back to school” she expressed her joy. 

Kingah Bertila Mayin who worked on An Emperical Investigation into the Economic Risk Factors and Consequences of Obesity in the Bamenda Municipality, proposed a rehabilitation center for obese persons, given that obesity has a negative impact on socio economic  activities like education,  employment, income, and also lead to  poor self-image, increased health expenditure, vulnerability to other health risks and stress. It was a long journey, a tough but one which was worth it. She was also proud to say “CATUC is the only University in Cameroon that offers Health Economics at the PhD level so I am very excited to have been part of the pioneer batch of PhD students”. 

According to Mih Clement Kum who presented a thesis on the topic -Religion Among the Esu People of the Northwest Region of Cameroon, he found out that people are religious reason why they do things the way they do them. Religion is  like a pyramid. The people know that the only way to meet God is passing through a medium who is a diviner. “The whole reason I did that was to establish that we don’t degrade or run away from  religion but to see that the people have their dignity” he said.

Rev Mih Clement gets vested  in ceremonial Rob upon successful PhD Defence

The amazing importance of technology was also demonstrated at the defence session. Among the five candidates was Fomba Louisette Naah who was not physically present but defended her thesis by  Zoom. Here  thesis was titled -The determinants of healthy and active aging.  

Audience at PhD Defence

Having achieved the feat of conducting her first ever PhD defences CATUC, which many  see as a holistic educational institution, hopes to continue with the program and to expand its range of offers in the coming years. Presently, the higher educational institution offers three programmes for the PhD which are Philosophy, Anthropology and Health Economics.