Kumbo
Kumbo, also known as Kimbo, is the second-largest city in the North West Province of Cameroon and the capital of Bui Division. It lies about 2000m above sea level and is situated approximately 110 km away from Bamenda, on the Bamenda Highlands Ring Road. Kumbo has a population of 80,212 and is split into three distinctive hilly settlements of Tobin, Mbveh, and Squares. The town is known for horse racing and traditional medicine, and also for its palace, a market and two hospitals. Kumbo is the capital city of the Nso Kingdom of the Nso people. The lingua franca is Lamnso but
Pidgin,
English,
Oku,
Djottin,
Fulfulde, French and
Hausa are spoken.History
The first German settlers were Missionaries of the Sacred Heart who arrived in 1912 and established their mission in 1913.
In recent years, Kumbo has been a battleground in the ongoing Anglophone Crisis. In May and June 2021, the Cameroonian Army carried out "Operation Bui Clean" to expel Ambazonian separatists from the city and its surroundings. The battles in Kumbo saw both sides suffer heavy casualties.
In April 2024, seaparatist insurgents carried out a substantial attack on Kumbo.Places of interest
The Fon's Palace
Seat of the paramount chief of the Nso people, this place is the heart of Kumbo social and cultural life. It is composed of several traditional buildings decorated with wood carvings, around two courtyards where the Fon uses to sit and receive his people or his advisers. There is a statue of Ngonso, the legendary first queen of the Nso people. Around the palace, other traditional buildings are also decorated with wood carvings. They are the seats of the sacred societies in charge to help the Fon in his task : the Ngwerong society and the Nggiri society. A mosque was built next to them, although most of Nso people are Christians.The Cathedral
Built in the 1950s, Kumbo Cathedral is constructed entirely from stones. The Cathedral is located at the top of the square hill, dominating the town's landscape. The Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop since its creation in 1983. The current bishop of Kumbo is George Nkuo. Prior to that, Bishop Cornelius Fontem Esua served the Diocese of Kumbo from 10 September 1982 to 7 December 2004.Horse riding
The origin of horse racing in Kumbo was influenced by The Mbororos, a nomadic tribe of cattle breeders originally from the west and north-west Central African Republic with a settlement in the Bamenda plateau grasslands. An integral part of Mbororos culture is horse racing. Through their influence, there is a famous annual horse race which takes place at the Tobin Municipal Stadium organised by the Ministry of Youths and Sports.The Mbve market
The Mbve market is the main market in Kumbo selling products from the region, Cameroon, Nigeria and other parts of Africa.