Ejagham Njemaya

Ejagham Njemaya

Ejagham Njemaya is one of the three Ejagham clusters in Eyumojock Sub Division, of Manyu Division, in the Southwest Region of Cameroon. The other two clusters are Obang and Ngunaya.

The Njemaya Cluster is made up of 26 towns and villages, according to government statistics. Ejagham Njemaya villages are heavily enclaved, as most of them are not accessible by motorable roads. Actually, it is not up to a decade that an all-season road passed through some Ejagham Njemaya villages and towns. The road runs from Mamfe, the Divisional capital of Manyu and forks out at Eyumojock. The left branch forks out again some three kilometres after Eyumojock with the left branch heading to Ayaoke and the famous Lake Ejagham, while the right arm heads to Otu through Ekang Border to Calabar.

From Eyumojock also, the other fork heads to Ekok, through Ajassor village, in Etung Local Government Area to Ikom, in Nigeria. This section of the road, which used to be the Mamfe-Enugu Road has been tarred right from Bamenda, the provincial capital of the Northwest Region of Cameroon to Enugu and is now being referred to as the Bamenda-Enugu Corridor.

The towns and villages that are directly on this highway include, Taboh, Mbakem, Akwen, Ndebaya, Mbeyan and Ekok. Other villages and towns in Ejagham Njemaya include; Abakpa, Ajamen, Akwa, Araru, Ayaoke, Babi, Babong, Ekugatae, Ekok, Ekoneman Awa, Ekoneman Ojongarrey, Eyangmange, Eyumojock, Inokun, Mbinda, Mboboui, Mbofong, Ndoup, Nsanakang, Nsanaragati, Ogurang, Okuri, Okurikang, Onaku and Otu.

From this highway, one can travel to Ayaoke, home to Lake Ejagham, and Ekoneman both of which are about 10 and 30 kilometres respectively from Eyumojock. Ekoneman is some six kilometres away from Awa the border village as one enters Cameroon from Nkameh in Nigeria.

Neighbours

Ejagham Njemaya towns and villages like Taboh share boundaries with Ngunaya communities like Ayukaba; while Babong shares boundaries with Aya-Ayuk-Ndep. On the Southeast flank, Otu shares boundaries with Ekang. Ekoneman shares boundaries with Nkameh, while Okuri shares boundaries with New Ndebiji, in Akamkpa Local Government Area, Nigeria.

On the Northeast flank, Ekok shares boundaries with Okoroba and Ajassor; in Etung Local Government; while Nsan-Aragati shares boundaries with Ekugatae, also in Etung Local Government Area. Up on the Cross River sailing towards Mamfe, Agborkem Ossijinghi, shares boundaries with Agborkem Obi, which is also in Etung Local Government Area of Cross River State, Nigeria.

Further up the Cross River heading to Mamfe from Mfum, Esagem village shares boundaries with Kesham, a Boki-speaking village in Cameroon now under Akwaya sub-division of Manyu Division.

Economic Activities and Tourism

Ejagham Njemaya people earn their income mainly from cocoa farming. Since there are no huge population settlements, food crop farming is still predominantly subsistent. However, with the opening of the Bamenda-Enugu highway, the likelihood of large-scale food crop farming like plantains, bananas, cocoyam, yams, cassava and its varied derivatives now exists, because of its proximity to the huge Nigerian market.

Key tourist attractions in Ejagham Njemaya include the almighty Lake Ejagham and the vast cocoa small holding farms that, combined together, actually look like huge plantations.

A boat ride from Akwen down Monaya to the main Cross River could take one either further down to Mfum and down to Ikom and Calabar or up the river to Mamfe. The Akarem river on the Ayaoke-Inokun road also provides wonderful scenery as it runs through Mbenyan to join Mmonaya at Akwen.

Indeed, for lovers of ecotourism, trekking from one village to another through the rich, virgin tropical forest is a delight.

Towns and Villages in Ejagham Njemaya Cluster – (Lower and Upper Ejagham or Ekwe) – Inokun Court Area, Ejagham Cameroon