Briefing on the ComBuildWS Project Execution.

Set_Picture_ComBuildWS_18-21-June-2025_Kribi_CAMIX [JPG]

The ComBuildWS (COMmunity BUILDing Workshop Series) project, grant G-202409-20336, have been realized in a context where some people of good will have tried numerous attempts in building the Peering and Interconnections domestic community within Cameroon. The project came as a continuity of another event called Douala Peering Day (DPD) [1], alongside with a project named DIXIUP (Douala-IX Infrastructure Upgrade Project -- grant G-202307-12438) [2]; which were also funded by ISOC Foundation under the SPI (Sustainable Peering Infrastructure) funding program.

Given that the AGMM (Annual General Members Meeting) of the CAMIX has been not held since five years; then succeeding in organizing such an event, with a great quorum, has been a notable achievement not only for the CAMIX association...

During the event, the community benefited from presentations by experts on the IXP industry across the African continent, within Cameroon, and world wide. These powerful presentations introduced them into discussions around the need to (i) build a sustainable domestic Internet environment for the peering and interconnections to (ii) freely grow in domestic traffic impact. They decided to show their support with more interconnections and peering; so that our domestic Internet traffic would be kept within the country boundaries: without leaving it anyhow.

Two organizations declared their intent to become members of CAMIX. The cmDOit (CaMeroonian DOmestic InterneT) community has been effectively launched!

In summary, we held workshops intended for managers of organizations holding an ASN (Autonomous System Number) operating in Cameroon.

The following key numbers may serve as a note well of what we have been able to achieve:

Effective Period of Activity: June 18-21, 2025
Effective Arrival Date of Delegates: June 21, 2025
Effective Workshop Date: June 19, 2025
Date of CAMIX General Assembly: June 20, 2025
Effective Departure Date of Delegates: June 21, 2025
Effective Number of Women: 01
Effective Number of Participants: ~32
Number of Online Participants: ~10
Effective Number of Speakers: 05
Number of ASN Numbers Reached: ~20
Number of IXP Operators Involved: 02
Number of Associated IXPs: 04
CAMIX = 3 PoPs or IXPs
Douala-IX = 1 PoP or IXP
Effective City of the Event: Kribi
Effective Physical Location of the Event: Hôtel du Phare
Public Project URI: Combuildws_Project_Cameroon-Peering-Community [cmNOG wiki] | https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CAMIX:Ideas-And-Projects:Projects:ComBuildWS_Project_Cameroon-Peering-Community
Public Folder for ComBuildWS Managers Workshops June 18-21, 2025 - NextCloud: https://nextcloud.cmnog.cm/s/gHJtwEmpm8XNYx6
Public Reports Folder for ComBuildWS Managers Workshops June 18-21, 2025 - NextCloud: https://nextcloud.cmnog.cm/s/frszqJ4T6FFJqxL
Public Media Folder for ComBuildWS Managers Workshops June 18-21, 2025 - NextCloud: https://nextcloud.cmnog.cm/s/QDPYcdFqoyeFPWp
Public Slides Folder for ComBuildWS Managers Workshops June 18-21, 2025 - NextCloud: https://nextcloud.cmnog.cm/s/xF7YJfoRZQzX4Ct
ComBuildWS Workshop Report: RAPPORT_Ateliers_du_18-21-Juin-2025_Kribi_Projet_ComBuildWS_et_AGO_2024_CAMIX_v4.2.0 - Google Docs | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Wb2Bzkcdwc8q7Ze-lW6V4_lQy1NOuWXP/view

As we indicated, the alignment with the CAMIX General Assembly [3] was crucial and allowed us to bring together a considerable number of delegates from the organizations operating these Internet operation networks in Cameroon. Thus, the ecosystem has been relaunched, and strong commitments have been made. They are in the form of recommendations, which will be transmitted to all stakeholders in our national ecosystem. A next step would be to bring together Technical Responsibles of ASN holder Orgs, within Cameroon; so that after aligning understandings of General Managers of the ASN Org holders, we are also allowed to do the same with their technical teams.

We have finalized both the report and the Minutes of the General Assembly Meeting (AGMM -- Annual General Members Meeting) of CAMIX; in order to render them publicly accessible [4], in addition to the Recommendations from the ComBuildWS workshops.

On behalf of myself, the Organizing Committee of the ComBuildWS project and all the organizations involved, we express our deep gratitude to the Internet Society, the Internet Society Foundation, and all those who mobilized, near or far, to support the realization of this project.

We would also like to express our gratitude to Mr. Joly MacFie, promoter of the ISOC.LIVE service, who provided both the archiving of the video recording and the live streaming of the event; including the transcript.

Beyond the difficulties encountered, we have seen a glimmer of impact within this nascent domestic peering community in Cameroon.

[1]: https://web.archive.org/web/20241015094551/https://douala.peeringday.cm/

[2]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/cmNOG:DIXIUP-Project

[3]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CAMIX:Structure:Association:General-Assembly

[4]: https://nextcloud.cmnog.cm/s/frszqJ4T6FFJqxL

[ComBuildWS_Project]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CAMIX:Ideas-And-Projects:Projects:ComBuildWS_Project_Cameroon-Peering-Community

[DIXIUP_Project]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/IdeasAndProjects:Projects:DIXIUP

[DIXIUP_SPI_Grant-ID_G-202309-12438]: https://www.isocfoundation.org/project/douala-ix-infrastructure-upgrade/

[ComBuildWS_SPI_Grant-ID_G-202409-20336]: https://www.isocfoundation.org/project/building-the-local-peering-interconnections-community-a-workshop-series-for-managers-from-ixps-members-within-cameroon/

[CAMIX_Association]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CAMIX:Structure:Association

[CAMIX_Members]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CAMIX:Structure:Association:Membership:Members

[CM_IXP_Federation]: https://www.cmnog.cm/dokuwiki/CM-IXP-Federation