"It Began with a Seed"
“I come from a place not written in textbooks. A small village tucked deep in the hills of the North West of Cameroon — Ngwokwong in Acha Tugi, Momo Division.
It is here, among the healing rocks, the fountains, and the heartbeat of nature, that I learned the meaning of community, of dignity, of peace.
My father, a farmer and community elder, taught me that service to people was the highest honor.
My mother — who still walks these paths — taught me patience, grace, and strength.
They did not teach me to chase success. They taught me to chase purpose.This is the story of a vision that was born long before I had words for it — a vision that would cross oceans, overcome storms, and call forth a continent’s awakening.
This is the story of The Africa We Want. And this… is my
The Seed Leaves Home
“I arrived in Germany with a suitcase, one dream, and no map.
Like many Africans in the last wave of immigration, I was told: ‘Integrate. Work hard. Be quiet. Be grateful.’
I listened — and then I observed.
I worked as a nurse, caring for Germany’s elderly with love and dignity. Behind every aging face, I saw a story. A past. A war. A wound.
And I began to understand… integration was not about losing myself.
It was about becoming fully myself — and bringing my culture, my song, my drum into the world I now lived in.”
“In 2007, I founded the Kumbaya Gospel Choir in Reutlingen.I needed to sing. We needed to pray. We needed to celebrate. Gospel music, for us, was not entertainment. It was healing. It was home.”
“When Cameroon was chosen as the focus country for the World Day of Prayer in 2010, I was invited to speak at over 50 church forums across Germany- image courtesy-WDPIC
There, I told stories of my homeland. Of the strength of African women. Of the need for understanding, not pity. Slowly, I began to see: I was not just a nurse. I was a cultural messenger.”
Setting the Stage for the Festival
“And so, the question came:
‘If I could bring all of Africa to Germany for one weekend… what would that look like?’
The answer… would become the Afrika Festivals Tübingen.
But first, I had to learn: when you plant a seed in foreign soil, it must fight to grow.
The story of this festival is not just about music or food or fashion.
It is the story of visibility. Of resistance. Of dignity in the diaspora.
