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:''For the roller coaster at Busch Gardens Tampa, see Kumba (roller coaster). For the fish genus, see Kumba (genus). For the South African iron ore company, see Kumba Resources''.

'Kumba' is a city in Southwest Province, western Cameroon. It has a population of 125,600 (2001 estimate).

Contents

History

Economy

Geography

Government

People

History

The History of the Bafaws can be retraced to a certain Esambe Ngoe from the Mboh plane of the Nkongsamba region. He settled at a place called Mashuie found around Kokobuma another of the few bafaw villages. It is said that one of his sons a Hunter Midiki Bokeng left for hunting and founded Kumba. The Bafaws are having doubts if the killing of Barrister Eseme of the Midiki's Family is related to the chieftaincy of Kumba, if that is the case how does this affect Nnoko Mbele a prosperous son of Kumba, accused; for the murder, being far from any of the two families; resulting to the power struggle between the Government Delegate(Nnoko MBELE) and the Chief (Muketes)???

Economy

The city is a trade centre for cacaos and oil palms, and has a timber industry as well. Kumba is a local road junction, making it one of the main commercial towns in anglophone Cameroon.

Geography

Although it is the largest city in the southwest province of Cameroon, it is not the provincial capital; which is located in Buea, the former German colonial capital. Because of its size, most major roads to the provincial interior radiate from Kumba, running to the Nigerian border at Mamfe, the Korup National Park at Mundemba, and Mt. Koupe to the east. The premier geographical attraction in Kumba is Barombi Mbo, a large crater lake located two kilometers northwest of Kumba's city center.

Government

Local politics have been divided between a government-appointed mayor (called the Government Delegate) and a local chief, Mukete. There has been something of a power struggle between the two in recent years, which has occasionally spilled over into local violence.

People

Most people speak some French, some English or Pidgin, and at least one of a variety of indigenous languages including Douala or Bakossi.
The indigenes of Kumba are the Bafaw, an ethnic group who speak a language similar to Duala, Mboh and Bakossi, and certainly Bantoid. Due to its cosmopolitan nature, the Bafaw now form just a percentage of the general population of the city, and have in most part lost many aspects of their culture, except for their language which is spoken mostly by the elderly and some of the younger generation.
Kumba is the birthplace of French international rugby great Serge Betsen.