(Business in Cameroon) - On 18 August, while hosting members of the new executive bureau of the Employers’ Group of Cameroon (Groupement Patronal du Cameroun - Gicam), the most important employers organisation in the country, the Minister of Finance (Minfi), Alamine Ousmane Mey, revealed that the government would, starting from 21 August 2017, disburse a total of FCfa 180 billion for companies.
According to the Minfi, this decision, which is the result of an order from the president of the Republic, is meant to service the internal debt of the State. This is, among others, about paying off the invoices of the State’s suppliers and reimbursing VAT credits, for a total of FCfa 100 billion.
Concurrently, in front of the members of the executive committee of Gicam, Alamine Ousmane Mey declared “FCfa 80 billion will be made available to banks to revive company loans (…) The actions will be effective from the week starting 21 August”. The disbursement of this envelope should give a little respite to local economic operators, whose activities generally slow down due to the difficulties faced by the State Treasury, main provider of contracts in the country.
As a reminder, during the first quarter of 2017, due to the gloomy economic situation, particularly characterised by the drop in public revenues, the Cameroonian public Treasury was unable to fulfill its financial commitments, in excess of FCfa 246 billion. Indeed, based on the mid-year review of the implementation of the 2017 budget published by the Ministry of Finance, only FCfa 735.9 billion out of the public expenditure of Cameroon, projected at FCfa 982.2 billion for this period, were fulfilled, representing an execution rate of 75%.
Brice R. Mbodiam