(Business in Cameroon) - To curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, Cameroon issued a set of measures in March, including the requirement to close drinking establishments by 6 P.M every day.
Some administrative authorities even went far by, for instance, prohibiting consumption on the spot.
This on the spot consumption prohibition has been issued by numerous regions in the Littoral, the East and recently (April 6) in the Northwest. “The Consumption of beverages in and around the premises of drinking institutions is prohibited until further notice,” ordered the governor of the Northwest, which is also facing a security crisis.
The managers of these institutions are complaining but their complaints are not coordinated. “It is not good for business to prohibit on the spot consumption and when we are also required to close by 6 P.M. Cameroonians are not used to taking their drinks home for consumption. Soon, we will go out of business,” said a pub owner in Douala.
The trade union of the sector has not commented officially but internal sources indicate it is currently negotiating with administrative authorities. “The Prime Minister has asked bars to close at 6 p.m., but governors and prefects are going beyond the government measures,” a union leader indicated.
In the Wouri, Littoral region, drinking establishments’ lobbying has already yielded some success. On April 6, Benjamin Mboutou, prefect of the Wouri, signed a note revoking its decree of April 2 that prohibited on the spot consumption. He, however, ordered the continuation of the measures issued by the Prime Minister, namely closure of drinking establishments, restaurants, and leisure facilities by 6 P.M.
Let’s note that in Cameroon, the brewery industry rests on three companies namely, SABC (Castel group), Guinness Cameroon (Diageo group) and UCB (Kadji group). In 2018, their combined net sales were XAF457.2 billion.
SABC paid XAF217.3 billion of taxes and duties to Cameroon’s public treasury. For the time being, we cannot quantify the impact of the measures on brewery groups’ sales, already affected by the security crisis.
S.A.