Les Tunnels ferroviaires de Njock

Les Tunnels ferroviaires de Njock is part of the Tentative list of Cameroon in order to qualify for inclusion in the World Heritage List.

The Njock Rail Tunnels are 3 tunnels made by hand in a rock massif that are a testimony of forced labour in Cameroun. During the First World War, the Germans had built the railway to the village of Njock. After the war, France decided to extend the railway to Yaoundé, which necessitated the construction of tunnels. The construction required an abundant workforce. This workforce was first found among the local population, who had to pay a tax for the development of the territories through free and forced labour, but the recruitment scope was later extended. There was a high number of deaths during construction. This tragic and dramatic period has been conserved in the collective memory as numerous Cameroonian languages have retained the term “Njock” to refer to hard work.