(Business in Cameroon) - Last December 16, during a press conference, the Ministry of Public Works unveiled part of the contractual clauses that bind Cameroon to the French consortium Razel Bec-Egis, in charge of financing, designing, building, equipping, operating, and maintaining the 14 automatic toll booths in the country.

The said partnership contract covers a 20-year period, including two years of construction and 18 years of operation. During the construction period, over 300 direct and many indirect jobs will be created, we learn.  

"To promote local employment, the Razel Bec-Egis consortium has committed to reserving 95% of the overall hourly labor volume required to Cameroonians, and hiring 98% of the staff dedicated to operation and maintenance services from the national workforce,” the communication material distributed by the ministry reads.  

“To guarantee a proven ‘local content’ use and consistent technological transfer, the partner has committed to hiring local small and medium-sized enterprises for design and construction services of up to 34% of the initial cost of the project (XAF7.854 billion pre-tax value),” the document continues.  

The 14 toll booths are to be built at Nsimalen (Yaoundé-Mbalmayo), Mbankomo (Yaoundé-Mbankomo), Tiko (Douala-Mutenguene), Edea (Douala-Edea), Boumnyebel (Edea-Boumnyebel), Nkometou (Yaoundé-Obala), Bayangam (Bangangte-Bafoussam), Bafia (Obala-Bafia), Mbanga (Douala-Mbanga), Manjo (Mbanga-Manjo), Bandja (Bafang-Bafoussam), Matazen (Bafoussam-Bamenda), Foumbot (Bafoussam-Foumbot) and Dschang (Dschang-Bamougoum).

The project is being carried out within the framework of a public-private partnership. Thus, Tollcam (a company under Cameroonian law, formed by the Razel-BEC-Egis Projects group) was awarded the contract on May 18, 2020. The company formed must ensure the financing, design, construction, equipment, operation, and maintenance of the works.

Sylvain Andzongo