Nexttel Cameroon has announced plans to introduce its mobile money services in the country by December, Nextvame reported. Nexttel Possa, which means Nexttel wallet, will be launched in collaboration with UBA Cameroon in compliance with CEMAC regulations. Their collaboration for that purpose was authorised by the central bank of the CEMAC region, Bank of Central African States (BEAC) on 12 March 2018.
Source: Telecompaper
The atrocities being committed by Cameroon government army soldiers including pro Biya armed militias is heralding the complete and total collapse of Southern Cameroons finances, and the war is placing a health burden on the English speaking population.
Suffering is deepening in all the 13 administrative units in Southern Cameroons particularly in Ekondo Titi-a locality in Ndian Division where Cameroon government troops recently destroyed nearly all local palm oil production facilities run by the inhabitants of the area.
A leading figure for peace in Southern Cameroons, Judith Nwana has been quoted as saying that the economy of the people of Ekondo Titi district is now in shambles amid rising poverty levels and increasing military operations by the regime in Yaoundé.
Ever since the war started in 2017, the economy in English speaking Cameroon has stagnated and per capita income has gotten a humpty dumpty fall leading to an increase in unemployment and deepening poverty.
The long term economic prospects for the people of Ekondo Titi and the entire Southern Cameroons-Ambazonia are even grimmer and there are no signs that these negative trends will be reversed soon following the unnecessary divisions among the Ambazonian groups and France’s ever increasing support for the 88-year-old President Biya.
The reasons behind the total collapse of the Southern Cameroons economy are the continues fighting between Cameroon government soldiers and the Ambazonia Restoration Forces, suffocation of Southern Cameroons business community by Francophone taxation officers, complete neglect of the territory by the Biya Francophone regime, deterioration of the security situation particularly in the rural areas and lack of an internationally backed peace initiative.
The Vice President of the Southern Cameroons Interim Government, Dabney Yerima told a news conference recently that all sectors of the Southern Cameroons economy are constrained by the French Cameroun imposed war and that what happened in Ekondo Titi was simply a repeat of Kwa Kwa, Muyenge, Ngarbuh, Ndu and Weh.
By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai
A forum, dubbed “Douala Economic Forum,” the first of its kind, opened on Monday in Cameroon’s commercial hub of Douala.
About 100 entrepreneurs, scholars, and government officials gathered for the event, which focused on topics including transportation, health, Internet, education, real estate, and public welfare.
While opening the forum, Douala city mayor Roger Mbassa Ndine said it intended to encourage local entrepreneurs and attract foreign investors in the city that is inhabited by over four million people.
“The forum gives us the opportunity to design a futuristic transportation and development plan for the city. The conclusions from experts and discussions during the forum should help us have a clear defined blueprint for the city’s development,” Ndine said.
Speakers at the forum stressed the importance of collaboration between state-owned enterprises, private enterprises, and foreign enterprises, as well as coordination between public and private sectors.
Organizers said, the forum will become an annual event in the city.
Source: Xinhuanet
Kenya’s Transport, Infrastructure and Housing Cabinet Secretary James Macharia who is the current Chairman of Shelter Afrique Annual General Meeting (AGM) Bureau will hand over the mantle to Cameroon’s Minister of Housing and Urban Development Hon. Celestine Ketcha Courtes at the Company’s 40th AGM and annual housing symposium scheduled to take place between 20th – 26th June 2021 in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
Hon. Courtes was elected the 1st Vice-Chairperson of the AGM Bureau at the Company’s 39th AGM held in Nairobi. She will be deputised by Zimbabwe’s Minister of National Housing and Social Amenities Hon. Daniel Garwe.
Chairing the General Assembly meeting held virtually from the Shelter Afrique Headquarters in Nairobi, on the 26th May,2020, Hon. Macharia briefed the Ministers of Cameroon and Zimbabwe on the performance of the Company during his tenure. He thanked the shareholders, his fellow Ministers present from Cameroon and Zimbabwe, the Shelter Afrique Board Chairman, Dr Steve Mainda EBS, Chief Executive,Mr Andrew Pandeka Chimphondah for their unrelenting support during his tenure.
“When I assumed the Chairmanship of Shelter Afrique AGM Bureau at the Company’s 38th AGM in Morocco, no one had foreseen a pandemic of COVID-19 magnitude. Despite all the challenges we were able to adapt fast to the new realities. I am happy to announce that the Company’s performance surpassed our expectations. The Company turned around and posted a profit of US1.85 million in 2020 in spite of the challenges of the pandemic. Shareholder contributions to Shelter Afrique doubled in support of the revived well governed institution. I am certain that the incoming leadership will enjoy similar goodwill from shareholders, the board of directors, management and staff ,” Hon. Macharia said.
While thanking shareholders for endorsing her, Hon. Courtès thanked Hon. Macharia for his effective leadership of AGM Bureau. She further assured him that the plans to host the best ever 40th AGM and 40th Anniversary for Shelter Afrique were at an advanced stage and that the beautiful hard working people of Cameroon were well prepared and eager to host the 44 Housing Ministers and 44 Finance Ministers that would be arriving in Yaounde,Cameroon from the 20th to the 25th June 2021.
“We are looking forward to hosting the Finance Ministers and Housing Ministers that will be present from the 44 member countries, Africa Development Bank, Africa-Re, global lenders from EIB, AFD, BOAD, KfW, NCBA, Ghana International Bank and other key stakeholders in the housing and financial sectors as we seek to collectively find pragmatic solutions to the housing crisis in Africa, more so during this post-COVID-19 era. As a country, we are committed to host,” Mrs. Courtes said.
Appreciating Mr. Macharia for his great leadership and welcoming Mrs. Courtes as new Chairperson and Honorable Garwe as new Vice-Chairman, Shelter Afrique Chief Executive Officer Andrew Chimphondah promised that this year’s AGM will go beyond the financials, not just because of the prevailing situations presented by a global pandemic but because the Company will also be marking its 40th Anniversary.
“In most cultures, 40 is a significant milestone; milestones offer us an opportunity to congratulate ourselves and enjoy our accomplishments. More importantly, they are a moment for us to reflect and consider what happens next. That is why the theme for this year’s AGM is Four Decades of Affordable Housing Policies in Africa: Mapping the Next Forty Years. Our 40th year will be one of retrospection. We believe as we navigate this new decade and the realities that this pandemic has thrown into sharp relief, there is a need to review Africa’s housing policy environment. Not merely to measure growth, successes and challenges but, more importantly, to forecast the next forty years to shape policy for our member-states and the way we approach low-cost large-scale delivery of housing in Africa,” Mr. Chimphondah said.
Mr Chimphondah also thanked the Bureau members for their stewardship during the pandemic, and noted that it had enabled The Company to record its first profit in five years and successfully conclude a Debt Restructure Agreement with global lenders. This marked the effective turnaround The Company from previous woes.
Noting the limitations presented by COVID-19 pandemic on travel and gatherings, Mr. Macharia said this year’s AGM will be presented as a hybrid of in-person and virtual attendance. Shelter Afrique successfully held its first virtual AGM in 2020 in Nairobi, Kenya.
New Shareholders
Another item high on the agenda will be the onboarding of a new Class “B” shareholder and creating further opportunities of Class “C” shareholders for non-African institutions and private companies to invest in the Company as a means of strengthening the Company’s capital structure.
“Already, Fonds De Solidarite Africain (FSA) has expressed interest in joining Shelter Afrique as a shareholder under the Class “B” cluster. At the 40th AGM, we will be seeking shareholders’ approval, in which case it will become our 47th shareholder as we strive to onboard the remaining 10 African countries that are not yet members of our great pan-african development finance institution,” Mr. Chimphondah said.
By Mike Omuodo
Even before the Friday incident at the Nsimalen International airport when a plane belonging to Cameroon’s national carrier, CAMAIR-CO ran off the runway, causing panic among passengers and flight crew, analysts had warned that CPDM corruption and poor leadership was making it difficult for the Biya regime to improve Cameroon’s air safety.
The exact circumstances of the incident are not yet known but first unofficial report hinted of no casualties.
Nsimalen airport officials say they have successfully evacuated all the passengers onboard the plane from the scene and only a scientific investigation will reveal the cause of the problem.
Despite CamairCo assurances to its customers, controversy still rages over the cause of the Nsimalen incident.
According to Cameroon Intelligence Report, which quoted an anonymous official in the Ministry of Transport, Camair Co has been flying coffins for over a decade.
The regime in Yaoundé has reportedly denied that the plane was faulty. But many in the Aviation industry contacted by Cameroon Concord News said that there were issues with the engine.
Some months ago, seven Cameroon government ministers had to make an emergency trip to the North of the country using a Kenya airways plane.
No one in the Ministry of Transport can provide any information on the various departments responsible for control of the systems, in terms of certification and control of CamairCo activities.
The general manager of CamairCo and his entire staff including the board of directors are all chartered members of the ruling CPDM Crime Syndicate. Correspondingly, the company avoids complying with government regulations by paying off officials.
If the CamairCo plane that ran off the runway on Friday was faulty, then it is evidently clear that the company paid an inspector to allow the aircraft to fly.
Air travel within Cameroon and all of Africa remains relatively dangerous. In 2010, The International Civil Aviation Organization reported that the accident rate for air traffic in Africa was more than four times the global average.
By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files
Cameroon’s poultry farmers and sellers are calling on authorities at home and in Europe to loosen trade restrictions put in place over the coronavirus pandemic and avian influenza, which have more than doubled the price of chicken.
Scores of chicken sellers in Cameroon’s capital held a one-hour sit-in Monday at the Mvog-Ada chicken market to protest the continued restrictions, which have pushed all but about 25 sellers — out of 300 last year — out of business.
One of those remaining chicken sellers is 33-year-old single mother Patricia Lamou, who says providing food and education for her four children is proving difficult.
Lamou says her business started to nosedive in March 2020 when Cameroon reported its first cases of COVID-19. She says her supplier blamed COVID-19-related travel restrictions by Cameroon and Europe for making regular supplies of chicks and hatching eggs impossible.
François Djonou, president of Cameroon’s Interprofessional Association of Poultry Farmers, says European countries and Cameroon reduced commercial flights to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The poultry shortage was further aggravated in November 2020, when the European Commission reported that multiple European countries had outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza, also known as bird flu. The viral infection can cause disease or death in birds and people.
As a precaution, Cameroon banned the import of chicks and hatching eggs from Europe. However, the avian influenza outbreak has since eased.
Cameroon’s chicken sellers are pleading with authorities on both sides to drop the trade restrictions, as they are creating a scarcity of chicken and driving up prices in the region.
Since January 2021, the retail cost of 1.5 kilograms of chicken has jumped from $5 to $12 in Cameroon, and up to $15 in neighboring Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, which import from Cameroon.
The poultry farmers group says the situation has forced more than a third of Central Africa’s 45,000 large- and small-scale chicken farmers and sellers out of business.
The group says regional production cannot keep up with demand. Central African states provide less than 20 million of the 150 million chickens needed in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, according to the group.
Meanwhile, Cameroon Livestock Ministry official Denise Abanda says they are negotiating to import eggs and chicks from Brazil.
“The importation of chicks and eggs from Brazil can be justified by the fact that the national poultry sector, which imports chicks and eggs from Europe, has difficulties to supply the local market with day-old chicks,” Abanda said. “So, the decision of the ministry is to find another partner from Brazil to supply the local market.”
Abanda says Brazil can provide the quantity of eggs and chicks that Cameroon needs.
Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of poultry and the third-largest producer of chicken meat, after the United States and China.
Culled from VOA
Cameroon is in talks with Rothschild & Co. to advise on a planned Eurobond sale in the first half of this year, Treasury officials said.
“The government is in negotiations with Rothschild to pilot the next Eurobond for Cameroon,” Department of Treasury Director Tela Samuel said by phone from the capital, Yaounde. A Rothschild spokesperson declined to comment when contacted.
The proceeds from the sale will be used to help repay $750 million of debt the government issued in 2015, Treasury Director-General Moh Sylvester said by phone on Friday. “The intention is to issue before June 30,” he said.
Cameroon’s planned sale comes as increased spending by the U.S. on economic stimulus is driving up global borrowing costs. It would follow offerings by Benin, Egypt, Ivory Coast and Ghana so far this year, while Kenya and Nigeria have announced plans for issues.
The debt sales are taking place as African nations seek funds to roll over debt and finance budgets strained by the coronavirus pandemic. Other countries, including Ethiopia, have opted to seek debt relief under a Group-of-20 initiative.
Yields on Cameroon’s 2015 bonds have almost halved after reaching a record high in April last year, and traded at 7.16% in London on Friday.
Culled from Bloomberg
He does not have the international prestige of Danpullo, Colin Mukete or Kate Fotso. And yet, Njong Eric Njong is the most prominent Anglophone entrepreneur in Cameroon today.
Three years ago, Célestin Tawamba, the boss of bosses, had already named 59-year-old Njong Eric Njong – who spares no effort nor smiles – among the 60 pioneers of Cameroon’s economy.
Tawamba even co-opted Njong and put his name forward during the last election of the executive board of the Groupement Interpatronal du Cameroun (Gicam), in December 2020.
National preference
At Gicam, Njong succeeded Franklin Ngoni Njie, head of the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC), which is the country’s leading (public) agro-industrial group.
Like CDC, his company, Boh Plantations – founded 12 years ago – produces bananas. Established in the South-West (where Njong himself comes from), it remains a small player in a sector dominated by PHP (Compagnie Fruitière de Marseille), the latter giving it technical assistance. Contrary to what happened to CDC in 2018-2019, the security crisis has not forced Boh Plantations to cease its activities for the time being.
Njong’s compatriots know him best through Buns, the construction company that the Lagos University-educated architect set up in 1993 and which has merged with the firm he founded.
Buns is one of the few local players – along with André Siaka’s Routd’Af – that can still compete with the multinationals in this sector. This businessman, who is a champion of “national preference” within the construction industry, is not hostile to all foreign investors.
For example, he is still chair of the board following the merger between the Cameroonian insurance firm Zenithe and its Senegalese equivalent Sonam.
Immersed for a long time in the financial sector, he also chairs the board of directors of the Union Bank of Cameroon, an institution which – after years of difficulty – may finally see the end of the tunnel.
In February, the state promised to recapitalise the bank, following a decision by Cameroon’s President Paul Biya.
Culled from The Africa Report by Oke Akombi Ayukepi Akap in Glasgow
MTN Cameroon has announced a new brand campaign with the slogan “Unbeatable with MTN, the indomitable network”. It highlights coverage, speed and quality of a service covering more than 97 percent of the population via 2G, 3G+, 4G and 4.5G technologies.
Source: Telecompaper
Today (9 March 2021) the United Kingdom has signed an Economic Partnership Agreement with Cameroon.
The trade deal, which will support jobs and build future prosperity, was signed by International Trade Minister Ranil Jayawardena and High Commissioner of Cameroon to the UK, H.E. Albert Fotabong Njoteh in London. The deal provides certainty for British and Cameroonian businesses, ensuring they can continue to trade as freely as they do now without any additional barriers or tariffs.
The UK-Cameroon trade was worth around £200m in 2019, and this deal lays a foundation to extend our trading relationship in the future. The UK market accounts for 12% of total exports of bananas from Cameroon and this agreement will maintain tariff-free market access to the UK. It also guarantees continued market access for UK exporters, who sold £50m in goods to Cameroon in 2019.
International Trade Minister Ranil Jayawardena said:
Today’s deal secures opportunities for both British and Cameroonian businesses – and will help support jobs and foster investment.
International trade and investment are engines of economic growth around the globe, so today’s deal will play a crucial role as we all build back better from Covid-19.
Minister for Africa James Duddridge said:
This agreement will make sure around £200m of trade between the UK and Cameroon can continue, supporting Cameroonian businesses to increase operations, enabling UK exporters to sell more goods and boosting prosperity for both countries as we together recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
This provides the continuity businesses in both the UK and Cameroon need to ensure trade between our countries continues to flourish and grow.
Today’s signing comes after the agreement to roll over current EU-Cameroon trading arrangements from 1 January 2021 concluded at the end of December.
The UK government has secured agreements covering 66 countries plus the EU, worth £890bn of trade in 2019.
Source: Gov.UK
