(Business in Cameroon) - The National Institute of Statistics (INS) recently published a note informing that Cameroon’s 2020 growth was 0.7%, down from the 3.7% growth recorded in 2019.
According to the INS, this performance recorded despite the coronavirus pandemic was spurred by the secondary sector (3.4%), which contributed 0.9% point to growth. In that sector, growth was driven by the building and public works segment, agri-food industries, and crude oil and gas extraction (1.3%).
"The primary sector, whose annual growth in 2020 remained positive (1.1%), also contributed sufficiently to the resilience of the economy by contributing 0.2 points to growth, mainly thanks to food crops," it adds.
The institute explains that the tertiary sector has been the most affected by the pandemic. Its impacts are noticeable in almost all the segments, notably, the trade (-0.9%), transport and storage (-2.4%), hotels and restaurants (-16.3%). With such results, the tertiary sector was contracted by 0.8% contributing -0.4% to GDP in 2020.
The growth estimate published by the INS is contrary to the figures forecasted or estimated by notable institutions like the African Development Bank (ADB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and even the Cameroonian Ministry of Economy, which supervises the INS. So far, the forecasts of these institutions are pointing towards a recession (-2.6%) for Cameroon in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Meanwhile, to defend its data, INS has always reminded us that it is the only agency habilitated to provide several economic data and statistics in Cameroon.
Sylvain Andzongo