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Yaoundé - 29 March 2024 -

Cameroonian Employers contest the « good score » given by Doing Business

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During the last meeting of the Board of Directors of the 295-member Employers' Movement, Protais Ayangma Amang, President of Cameroon Enterprises (ECam), his Vice Presidents Célestin Tawamba, Jean Perrial Nyodog and the Director General Christian Pouth, discussed several issues concerning the development of SMEs and the 2012 Doing Business classification.

 

During the last meeting of the Board of Directors of the 295-member Employers' Movement, Protais Ayangma Amang, President of Cameroon Enterprises (ECam), his Vice Presidents Célestin Tawamba, Jean Perrial Nyodog and the Director General Christian Pouth, discussed several issues concerning the development of SMEs and the 2012 Doing Business classification.

Doing Business

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« Cameroonian SMEs do not identify with this classification », Célestin Tawamba, 2nd Vice President of ECam emphasized. The Doing Business 2012 report ranked Cameroon 161st , i.e. four places upwards compared to last year, using the following criteria: job creation, issuance of building permit, access to electricity, property transfer, obtaining loans, protecting investors, paying taxes, cross-border trade, performance of contracts, resolving insolvency

«We are very attentive to Doing Business. But not in terms of ranking. Cameroon appears to have changed. But, fundamentally, nothing has changed in reality », Protais Ayangma explained.

Ayangma argued : « We have moved up 41 places on the 'lending to the economy' criterion. This is still very artificial because, in reality, the banks did not give out many loans. The development referred to is probably due to the effect of the bond issue through which the State was able to mobilize 200 billion CFAF within a few days. But this does not reflect the reality of the banks' coming to the rescue of SMEs ».

ECam Proposals
Within the framework of the 2012 Finance Act, ECam made several proposals including the suppression of some duty-free importation possibilities, the simplification of administrative procedures ...

Jean Perrial Nyodog explains «We have suggested encouraging local SME's wishing to substitute for imports. Local producers who invest in the pharmaceutical sector are, for example, obliged to pay customs duties for inputs and equipment used by factories; while right opposite, there are 120 billion CFA francs of duty-free imports »

2012 Doing business ranking of Cameroon (source World Bank)

Some ECam proposals to the Government
Payment to SMEs within a maximum period of 60 days
Refunding of VAT funds by the tax administration
Extending the time limit set for the submission of Statistics and Tax Declarations
Reducing the effective taxation rate applied to companies and natural persons.
Suppression of the 5% down payment on fees, emoluments, commissions...