The challenges to the development of small and medium-size enterprises are enormous, with start-up promoters listing among others the lack of financing, the quality and cost of Information and Communication Technologies. But more worrisome, young entrepreneurs say, are bottlenecks that hinge on the fiscal regime. High taxes and the lack of appropriate management skills have also been identified as limitations. The Minister of Small and Medium-size Enterprises and Social Economy, Laurent Serge Etoundi Ngoa in Yaounde on September 21, 2016, acknowledged that Cameroonian SMEs, especially start-ups, are in a fix. He cited the non-mastery of the country’s tax regime by SME promoters as reason. Government is aware of the challenges and the setting up of Authorised Management Centres (Centre de gestion Agréé), is just one of efforts for a level playground.

A campaign to incite SME promoters on how to benefit from facilities offered by the centres ended in Yaounde on September 22. Minister Etoundi Ngoa launched the campaign that received support from the Ministry of Finance. The campaign sensitised startups on the need to fully register with the centres that were created by government in 2010 to offer assistance. The 26-odd centres in Cameroon offer management and fiscal opportunities. The cream of SME promoters at the ceremony in Yaounde was told that the campaign was a national call by government against bottlenecks.

The Authorised Management Centres offer assistance in management, accounting and taxation (monitoring, payment of taxes, control and tax litigation), public relations and produces balance sheets of SMEs with annual turnover of less than or equal to FCFA 100 million. Fully registered SMEs benefit 50 per cent reduction of tax reported earnings as well as exoneration of license at the second year of operation amongst many. The sensitisation campaign will continue to other regions of the country.

Culled from Cameroon Tribune