Soppo
Soppo Location in Cameroon
Coordinates: 4°9′N 9°17′E / 4.150°N 9.283°E / 4.150; 9.283
Country	Cameroon
Province	South West Province
Elevation	2,300 ft (700 m)

Mount Cameroon view from Buea (Soppo)

Great Soppo is made of five villages; Soppo Mokongo as the chief village, Soppo wôganga, soppo wôvila, soppo wôteke and soppo likôkô in Fako division, SWR Cameroon. It is located at around 4°9′N 9°17′E / 4.150°N 9.283°E / 4.150; 9.283.

From 1904 to 1914 it was the headquarters of the German colonial military forces ("Schutztruppe"). Because of its moderate temperatures, owing to the altitude of the village (approximately 700 m), the Baptist missionary Carl Jacob Bender turned Great Soppo into a retreat for missionaries in the coastal regions of Cameroon. The church he built in the 1930s still hovers above the village.

The present-day traditional ruler of Great Soppo is H.R.H. Etina Monono amid councilors like Matanga Monono, Nganda Tônga, Ngale Lambe, Liombe Becke, Wôlôa Monono and others who work in synergy to pursue betterment of the Soppo community.

Overview

Great Soppo is a second class chiefdom^[1] in the Buea Municipality preceded by a then fraternity known as Soppo Ndene. The village has a female chief (môlana ndene); Môjôkô Muaka who administers and adjudicates the socio-economic ventures of soppo women as well as their wellbeing. Great soppo is multiracial in nature with lots of socio-cultural activities such as traditional wrestling (wészùå), fatal end of year football games, life celebrations and more. An imperative characteristic of Great soppo comprises the enormous royal ménage where sovereignty lives. Esembe Muaka Môkake a soppo developmental economist hypothesized that “It is worth noting; Soppo is the only village in Fako where the greatest of all great things betide” (ômā nånú).

Notable institutions

Presbyterian Church^[2]

G.H.S Great Soppo^[1]

B.H.S Buea^[1]

References