Cultural Diversity and Education in Cameroon: Challenges and Opportunities

This work is the result of cooperation, research and inter-university transfer, carried out thanks to a grant awarded in 2023 by the Office of Development and Cooperation (ODEC) of the University of Lleida to the annual call for development cooperation projects. This collaboration is not recent, as the faculties of Education of the universities of Yaoundé I (Cameroon) and Lleida (Spain) have been working together for more than ten years with the ultimate goal of improving the training of their students, future teachers and social educators. Specifically, empirical qualitative work has been carried out with thirty-two young Cameroonians who are studying for their bachelor’s or doctoral degrees in both Spain and Cameroon. As the project is much broader, this article reflects on how the Cameroonian school of the 21st century should be a real space for multicultural encounters, and focuses on such aspects as coexistence, respect for differences, inclusion, the gender perspective, the management of the diversity of ethnic groups, etc. At the same time, it does not ignore that it is necessary to promote cooperation and mutual knowledge of both educational contexts.