Cameroon intends to inject CFA107 billion out of the CFA150 billion soon to be mobilized on the Douala Stock Exchange into infrastructures, in preparation for the 2019 AFCON. This equates to 70% of the amount, the government said in the operation’s information note.

In detail, CFA62 billion will be used to fund final works at the Olembe sports complex (a suburb in Yaoundé), its secondary stadiums and access roads will receive CFA36 billion; CFA26 billion for the Japoma complex (suburb of Douala), its secondary stadiums and access roads. As well, the Reunification Stadium in Douala will receive CFA8 billion for rehabilitation work.

In Garoua, the only northern city to host games, CFA20 billion will be invested, including CFA8 billion for the rehabilitation of the Roumde-Adja stadium and its access roads, and CFA12 billion for the rehabilitation of four training stadiums.

This latest financing will benefit the company Prime Potomac, which is leading works on these four stadiums, and was recently accused by employees and other subcontractors for failure to pay wages and fulfil contracts, due to cash flow constraints.

In the Western region, where a brand new stadium has already been erected in the locality of Kouékong, CFA17 billion will be invested to build a secondary stadium and rehabilitate four other training stadiums in the cities of Mbouda, Bafoussam and Bandjoun.

Let’s recall that the coming CFA150 billion bond issue received approval from the Financial Markets Commission (CMF) last October 19.

Brice R. Mbodiam

The Ring Road project (358 km), a kind of road loop that will link the main cities of Cameroon’s North-West region, could soon benefit from investments. Indeed, the Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi (photo), recently met in Yaoundé with technical and financial partners involved in the transport sector including the World Bank, French Development Agency (AFD), Development Bank of Central African States (Bdeac) and the European Union.

“The hosts of the Minister of Public Works said they were considering several other funds in this segment, such as the major structuring Ring Road project, for which discussions have begun,” official sources said. The next step will then be to speed up procedures for funding.

Let’s mention that the project is significant both for partners and the government since it will contribute to develop Cameroon's Anglophone regions with high potential, namely the North-West and South-West. The Cameroonian government is seeking a total financing of about CFA155 billion for the Ring-Road.

During this meeting of financial partners, the World Bank reported an active portfolio representing 65% of total investments in Cameroon’s transport sector, currently estimated at nearly CFA875 billion.

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Cameroonian bank Afriland First Bank and the international retailer Orca, which specializes in mass distribution, have jointly set up a 20,000 m² distribution center in Mfandena, opposite the legendary Omnisports stadium in Yaoundé. The latter is one of the venues that will host the next African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in 2019.

The facility valued at CFA6 billion offers 85,000 trade references distributed over three floors. According to Hayssam El Jammal, CEO of Orca, it has a better chance of succeeding in Cameroon because the country “has several large cities such as Bamenda, Kribi, Douala, Yaoundé, etc. This is not the case in some other countries, such as Côte d'Ivoire, where there is only Abidjan, or Senegal with Dakar”.

For Alphonse Nafack, Managing Director of Afriland First Bank, “this project is an undeniable economic and social asset, not only in terms of the equipment it provides, but also in terms of job and wealth creation”.

In support of these comments, the Cameroonian trade minister, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, who attended the inauguration September 28, said the brand new center is sufficient proof of the country's attractiveness for investment.

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The Bank of Central African States (BEAC) has just extended to 1 November 2018 (instead of 11 October as initially planned), the deadline for receiving bids to monitor the renovation work on its headquarters building in Yaoundé, the Cameroonian capital, we learnt from an official statement.

“The selection file is submitted exclusively in electronic form in PDF format. Participation to bid is totally fee-less,” Beac recalled. For the record, the works to be supervised cover a total renovation of the whole building, with the exception of the air conditioning and ventilation, the Central Bank pointed out.

BRM

The Development Bank of Central African States’ (BDEAC) investments in Cameroon reached CFA279 billion late June 2018, the institution said in a statement released September 17.

According to the document, the latest financing granted to the country (CFA7.2 billion) concerned the completion of a private project to set a cocoa processing unit in Kribi (Southern part). In recent years, BDEAC’s commitments mainly went to transport and energy sectors.

In the energy sector, the bank disbursed CFA20 billion to support the Lom Pangar dam’s construction, the largest infrastructure of its kind ever built in Cameroon with a storage capacity of 6 billion m3.  

In transport, the CFA25 billion injected targeted the construction of Kumba-Mamfé road in the South-Western region, which links Douala to neighboring Nigeria. BDEAC also supported the construction of the Sangmélima (Cameroon-Ouesso Congo) road, an inclusive project whose completion on the Cameroonian side has been facing difficulties in recent years.

Let’s note that the Development Bank of Central African States is a sub-regional institution which operates alongside both governments and private sector operators.

 Brice R. Mbodiam

Cameroon is seeking financial support from japan to construct the Ebolowa-Akom II- Kribi (168.57 km) and Ring Road (358 km) roads. The request was made September 17 during a meeting between the Cameroonian minister of public works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi, and Kunio Okamura, Japan's Ambassador to Cameroon, in Yaoundé.

The Japanese official said his country is committed to support Cameroon’s development. In this wake, Japan will favorably handle the financing request for road projects.

Let’s note that the Ebolowa-Akom II-Kribi road is divided into two main lines namely Ebolowa-Akom II, (83.19 km) and Akom II-Kribi (85.38 km). The latter are also made of several sections of which only the 3rd and 4th (Kribi-Campo, 73.57 km and Campo-Dipikar, 20 km) have already been delivered since 18 April 2014. As for the Ring-Road, financial needs are estimated at CFA155 billion.

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Initially scheduled for 13 September 2018, the deadline for submitting a bid to construct the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) center in Ebolowa (South region) has been postponed until October 12, the bank said.

Back on 15 July 2014, Beac had short-listed five companies and groups of companies to tender for the preliminary studies. The Cameroonian firm Yimgaing Moyo was also selected. Let’s note that the implementation of this new center will bring to 7 the number of Cameroonian towns housing Beac hubs. These include Yaoundé, which houses the National Directorate and the headquarters, and the agencies of Douala, Bafoussam, Garoua, Limbe and then the Nkongsamba office.

Furthermore, the bank's board is also planning a center in Bertoua, the regional capital of Eastern Cameroon, which houses almost all of the country's major mining deposits.

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Cameroonian Civil Aviation (Ccaa) announced further investments to develop secondary airports to improve domestic services. The plan covers the deployment and commissioning of equipment required to operate the infrastructures.

Under the strategy, the airports of Ngaoundéré (in Adamaoua), Bafoussam and Bertoua were equipped. At Bafoussam and Bertoua, equipment includes two inverters, protection cabinets, new generation recorders with sixteen analogue and eight digital channels. In addition, the control tower was granted a control console, intercom, two portable VHF units, a recorder and a security intercom.

“The new equipment will help the airports operate more efficiently. They are a guarantee for flight safety as the air traffic controllers at Bertoua and Bafoussam airports will now be better equipped to ensure the fluidity of flights,” Ccca said. The next step once the airport development is completed will be to enhance the human capital at the three airports.

According to Aéroports du Cameroun which is charged with airport management, Cameroon’s airports welcomed 1.14 million passengers between January and November 2017. A figure that can further increase, according to Ccaa.

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Upon the impending China-Africa Cooperation Forum (Focac) to be held in September, the Cameroonian President Paul Biya is seeking CFA1.7 billion ($3 million) from China to address the current unrest in Anglophone regions.

“President Xi Jinping should announce China's support to the emergency humanitarian assistance plan decided by the (Cameroonian) Head of State for people in the North-west and South-West regions who are victims of exactions from terrorists who turned into secessionists,” official sources said.

According to the Presidency of the Republic, the support could be granted as a gift without consideration, including aid equipment. Let’s mention that the fund is part of the 2018-19 Humanitarian Assistance Plan valued at CFA12.7 billion announced June 20 by the Prime Minister Philemon Yang.

The scheme is set to reach the estimated 74,994 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), of which 66,262 are in the South-West region and 8,732 in the North-West region. The victims of abuses in host localities and communities are also included, as well as the 21,291 refugees estimated by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Major areas of actions include housing, food and basic necessities, education, protection and reconstitution of individual documents. The government also plans assistance and comfort visits to the refugees in Nigeria.

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Cimenteries du Cameroun (Cimencam), the local subsidiary of LafargeHolcim Maroc, acquired a 42-ha deposit hosting 12 million tons of pozzolan in Foumbot, in the western region. The quarry has a 50-year life time.

According to Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo (photo), Chairman of Cimencam’s board, pozzolan accounts for 30% of cement production. Foumbot quarry’s output will be used as an addition in the manufacturing process, at the new production plant (500,000 tons) under construction in Nomayos, a slum in Yaoundé.

The Nomayos plant (CFA23 billion) which could be completed in 2019 is expected to bring the company’s annual production to 2 million tons of cement in Cameroon. Let’s recall that Cimencam paid CFA240 million in compensation to people living near the Foumbot quarry.

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