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Article History

Received: 10 April 2026

Accepted: 7 July 2026

First Online: 20 July 2026

Declarations

Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and adhered to all applicable national and institutional ethical guidelines for research involving human participants. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Board of the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea (Reference: 2020/1170-30/UB/SG/IRB/ FHS). Administrative authorization was also secured from the Regional Delegation of Public Health for the South-West Region (Reference: R11/ MINSANTE/NWR/RDPH/PS/631/63). Written informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to data collection. For participants younger than 16 years, written informed consent was obtained from their parents or legal caregivers. For participants who were unable to read or write, the consent form was read and explained in the appropriate local language, and consent was documented in the presence of a legally authorized representative who confirmed the voluntary nature of participation.

Consent for publication: Was obtained from all participants involved in the study. No identifiable personal information is included in this manuscript.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.