(Business in Cameroon) - Over the 2017-2018 period, the Cameroonian government is planning to surface a total of 1,615 km of new roads, the Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi, announced during a press conference organised on 14 February in the capital of the country.

To reach this objective, approximately 1,000 km of roads will be asphalted this year, the Prime Minister, Philémon Yang, revealed while presenting the economic, political and cultural programme of the government for 2017 to the parliamentarians. This was in November 2016 in Yaoundé.

In this regard, a global envelope of FCfa 461 billion will be injected this year in the road construction, renovation and maintenance works in the country. Some works to be undertaken as part of the emergency plan launched by the government will necessitate FCfa 100 billion, FCfa 12 billion will be transferred to local governments, while the contribution from the budget of the Ministry of Public Works will be FCfa 312 billion.

In other words, in 2017 and 2018, the Cameroonian government will largely exceed its commitment to asphalt an average of 300 km of roads per year. This commitment comes with the ambition the public authorities have of reaching the target of 8,500 km of surfaced roads in Cameroon by 2020 (against slightly over 6,000 km currently). Which will in reality correspond to only 17% of the national road network.

BRM