Business

26, August 2026

Cameroon’s cocoa export revenue plunges 63% as shipments and prices fall ⁰

Cameroon’s cocoa export earnings fell 63% during the 2025-26 season, hit by a sharp decline in both shipments and international prices, a reversal that could cost cocoa its newly acquired position as the country’s largest export product.

Cameroon exported 125,469 tons of raw cocoa beans during the season that officially ended July 15, 2026, according to data released by the National Cocoa and Coffee Board, or ONCC, at the launch of the 2026-27 season. That was 66,543 tons, or 34.7%, below the 192,012 tons shipped a year earlier.

The value of those exports at the port of Douala dropped even more sharply, to CFA400.9 billion from CFA1.07 trillion in the previous season, a decline of CFA673 billion.

The ONCC did not provide a specific explanation for the steep fall in export volumes, which came alongside a decline of more than 15% in locally processed beans. Its figures, however, point to lower marketed production and a sharp increase in end-of-season inventories.

Marketed cocoa production fell 19.9% to 247,914 tons in 2025-26 from 309,518 tons the previous season, reducing the volume of beans available for purchase.

Meanwhile, closing stocks nearly tripled to 40,446 tons from 13,946 tons. That means the volume of beans remaining in inventory increased by 26,500 tons between the two seasons.

Europe Takes More Than 84% of Exports

Telcar Cocoa regained its position as Cameroon’s largest cocoa exporter, shipping 40,631 tons, or 32.4% of the season’s total.

The company, led by Kate Fotso, had lost the top spot in 2024-25 following the end of its partnership with U.S. commodities trader Cargill. Telcar exported 30,497 tons that season, giving it a 15.7% market share.

Ofi Cam ranked second in 2025-26 after exporting 24,394 tons, or 19.4% of the total. SBET, the previous season’s market leader, slipped to third place with 23,223 tons, representing 18.5%.

Together, the three companies accounted for 70.3% of Cameroon’s cocoa bean exports.

Europe remained by far the largest destination, led by the Netherlands. ONCC data show the continent received 84.6% of Cameroon’s exports. Asia accounted for 14%, while the Americas and Africa each received about 1%.

Lower Prices Deepen the Revenue Hit

The 63% collapse in export revenue reflects not only fewer shipments but also a steep decline in cocoa prices between the two seasons.

According to the ONCC, FOB prices at the port of Douala ranged from CFA3,808 to CFA7,536 per kilogram during the 2024-25 season. In 2025-26, the range dropped to CFA1,520-CFA3,110 per kilogram.

That represents a decline of roughly 58% to 60% between the two seasons.

The combination of lower production, fewer exports and weaker prices could have broader implications for Cameroon’s external trade.

Cocoa overtook crude oil as the country’s largest export product in 2025 after benefiting from the earlier surge in global prices. According to the National Institute of Statistics, cocoa beans generated 26.3% of Cameroon’s export revenue that year, compared with 22.9% for crude oil.

With cocoa export earnings down 63% in the latest season, maintaining that lead in 2026 could prove difficult. The downturn therefore represents more than a weak cocoa season: it could reshape the composition of Cameroon’s export earnings just one year after cocoa displaced oil at the top.

Source: Business in Cameroon

19, August 2026

Yaoundé allocates CFAF400 million to SMEs ⁰

Cameroon has allocated CFAF400 million to finance small and medium-sized enterprises involved in the distribution of locally produced food, targeting a key bottleneck in the government’s import-substitution program: getting domestic products from producers to consumers.

The funding was announced on August 18, 2026 in a Trade Ministry release disclosing an agreement signed by Trade Minister Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana and Amadou Haman, Managing Director of the Cameroon Bank for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (BC-PME).

According to the Ministry of Trade, the CFAF400 million was transferred to BC-PME under the ministry’s 2026 budget. The bank will provide financial and technical support to businesses operating under the Integrated Agropastoral and Fisheries Import-Substitution Plan (PIISAH).

The facility targets companies involved in processing, packaging, storage, logistics and distribution, with rice, maize, flour, palm oil and milk among the priority value chains. The objective is to build distribution networks capable of bringing locally produced goods to market under competitive conditions.

The initiative addresses one part of Cameroon’s broader import-substitution strategy: ensuring that increases in domestic production are matched by the capacity to store, transport and sell those products efficiently.

“Producing more is not enough,” Mbarga Atangana said, stressing the need to strengthen the link between production and consumers. The financing comes as food imports continue to weigh heavily on Cameroon’s import bill. According to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INS), the country spent CFAF543.7 billion on cereal imports in 2024, up 40.3% from 2023.

Rice imports alone reached CFAF318.6 billion, an increase of 58.6% year on year, while wheat imports stood at CFAF214.1 billion. In the first quarter of 2025, cereals accounted for 11.2% of Cameroon’s total import expenditure, with rice representing 7.1% and wheat 3.8%.

The pressure extends beyond food products. INS figures show that Cameroon’s overall trade deficit widened by 22.8% to CFAF2,145.2 billion in 2025, from CFAF1,747.3 billion a year earlier, while total import expenditure increased by 4.6%.

Against that backdrop, the government is seeking to strengthen the commercial side of domestic production. According to the Trade Ministry, locally produced goods must not only be available in sufficient quantities but must also meet requirements related to quality, traceability, regular supply and competitive distribution.

Mbarga Atangana said the partnership with BC-PME is intended to make trade a more active part of the country’s production and industrialization drive.

“This agreement reflects our shared determination to make trade a genuine lever for economic transformation and wealth creation,” the minister said, adding that the partnership is also intended to improve “the competitiveness of Cameroonian enterprises.”

PIISAH covers the 2024-2026 period and forms part of Cameroon’s import-substitution policy under the National Development Strategy 2020-2030. The government has again identified the plan as one of its economic priorities for 2026.

Mbarga Atangana said implementation will require coordination among public institutions, businesses and professional organizations.

“The success of PIISAH depends on the collective mobilization of the State, professional organizations and businesses,” he said.

Source: Business in Cameroon

19, August 2026

East Region: At least 33 dead in landslide at gold mine in Garoua-Boulaï ⁰

At least 33 people have died in a landslide at a gold mine on the border between Cameroon and the Central African Republic, according to local authorities.

Many more miners are believed to be buried under the debris, said Julien Martial Asse, the municipal administrator of the nearby Cameroonian border town of Garoua-Boulaï.

The landslide at the artisanal mining site occurred Tuesday midday. Rescue workers continued searching for survivors on Wednesday. Some injured miners were receiving medical treatment.

The cause of the collapse was initially unclear, as was the number of miners prospecting for gold at the time of the accident.

The border area between Cameroon and the Central African Republic is rich in gold. A lot of gold mining in the region is carried out by hand. Low safety standards mean serious accidents are a repeat occurrence.

Source: dpa

13, August 2026

Cameroon’s banana exports jump 34% in July to 20,577 tons ⁰

Cameroon’s banana exports rose sharply in July 2026, with all three producers active in the country recording higher shipments. According to data from the Cameroon Banana Association (Assobacam) reviewed by Business in Cameroon, producers exported a combined 20,577 tons during the month.

The volume was up 34.1% from 15,336 tons in July 2025. The strongest growth came from Compagnie des Bananes de Mondoni (CDBM), the second Cameroonian subsidiary of French group Compagnie Fruitière de Marseille. According to Assobacam, CDBM’s exports rose 96.6% from 1,685 tons in July 2025 to 3,313 tons a year later, an increase of 1,628 tons.

Plantations du Haut Penja (PHP), Compagnie Fruitière’s main subsidiary in Cameroon, increased its exports by 33% over the same period. The country’s largest banana producer shipped 13,577 tons in July 2026, up 3,369 tons from 10,208 tons a year earlier.

Bananas Remain a Major Source of Export Revenue

Assobacam data show that Compagnie Fruitière’s two local subsidiaries exported a combined 16,870 tons of bananas in July 2026. Together, they accounted for 82% of Cameroon’s banana exports during the month.

The remaining 18% came from the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC), the industry’s only state-owned operator. It also became the only producer under domestic ownership after Compagnie Fruitière subsidiaries acquired the assets of Boh Plantations PLC in 2025.

CDC, Cameroon’s second-largest employer after the public administration, exported 3,687 tons of bananas in July 2026. Shipments rose 7%, or 244 tons, from 3,443 tons in July 2025.

Bananas are one of Cameroon’s main sources of export revenue. In 2025, international banana sales generated CFA67.7 billion for the country, up 84.7% year on year, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INS).

Source: Business in Cameroon

9, August 2026

Aliko Dangote met Canada’s prime minister to discuss African investment ⁰

Aliko Dangote met Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at his office in Canada to discuss investment partnerships between Canada and Africa, in a meeting the Dangote Group described as focused on opportunities inside Canada.

The stated agenda was the direction less commonly reported. According to the group, the discussions covered expanding investment opportunities in Canada and how the Dangote Group, alongside other African investors, might contribute to Canadian economic growth. The two also discussed Canada’s Africa Strategy and two-way trade flows.

No investment figure, sector, agreement or timeline was disclosed.

“Strategic partnerships between Africa and Canada have immense potential to drive sustainable growth and create value for both regions,” Dangote said. “There is a strong case for increasing investment, fostering innovation, and building mutually beneficial commercial relationships.”

He said closer economic ties would create jobs, support innovation and advance industrial development.

Dangote also met Ahmed Hussen, a member of parliament who chairs Canada’s foreign affairs committee. Hussen was born in Mogadishu and arrived in Canada as a refugee at 16, later serving as immigration minister and international development minister. Those discussions covered trade, investment and long-term cooperation.

A G7 prime minister taking a personal meeting with an African industrialist about outbound African capital is a departure from the pattern of the past two decades, in which Western governments have positioned themselves as sources of development finance for Africa rather than destinations for African investment.

Carney spent his career in central banking before entering politics, running the Bank of Canada through the financial crisis and the Bank of England through Brexit, which gives the meeting a different character from a routine trade call.

The timing sits alongside the largest capital raising Dangote has attempted. Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has filed with Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering expected to conclude in October, seeking about $5 billion in what would be the largest share sale ever conducted in Africa. Exchanges in South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana and Rwanda have held talks with the company’s advisers about allowing local investors to take part.

Source: Billionaires.Africa

8, August 2026

2 months without Biya: Cameroonian dollar bonds records its weakest performance ⁰

The 93-year-old president is said to have left the nation on June 7 for what authorities characterized as a brief private vacation to Europe, but has yet to return, marking one of his longest absences in recent years.

This would typically not be a problem for the country, which has no legal reservations about the president leaving the country for months.

However, the challenge results from the fact that the Cameroonian president decided against selecting a vice president, leaving the country in what the opposition parties called ‘autopilot.’

A former ally of the president and current opposition leader, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who finished second in the October presidential election, stated on Thursday that there is a general belief in Cameroon that “all is not well” with Biya, whose absence has infuriated his camp.

“Biya’s very long stay in Switzerland only aggravates that lack of legitimacy and his desperate attempts to hold on to power by force,” Bakary stated, as seen on AP.

“Even if Biya still proves to be strong at this age, it is clear that his health challenges are taking a toll on his leadership. Cabinet reshuffles over the past 15 years have amounted to little more than recycling the same people from one ministry to another,” Wilson Tamfuh, a professor of Public and International Law at the University of Dschang, stated.

Very recently, the president of Cameroon, despite being absent, reshuffled military leadership within the country.

Another report by Bloomberg shows that investors are now spooked by Biya’s absence, which may be exerting downward pressure on the nation’s dollar bonds, as investors seek to ascertain whether a political transition is subtly taking place within the oil-producing state.

Furthermore, Cameroonian dollar bonds have recorded the weakest performance across the African continent since early June.

Cameroon’s recent military change

The change in military command was revealed by three presidential orders signed on Monday and posted on the Cameroonian president’s X website.

They include raising the head of the Presidential Guard from colonel to brigadier general and changing commanders in four of the country’s five unified military districts.

The shake-up also led to the appointment of a new commander for the elite Rapid Intervention Brigade, one of Cameroon’s most powerful security forces.

Other appointments affected commanders of motorized infantry brigades around the nation.

Cameroon’s President Paul Biya, the world’s oldest serving head of state, remains one of Africa’s most lasting and divisive leaders, as concerns about succession and governance grow.

The 93-year-old has led Central Africa since November 1982, making him one of the world’s longest-serving non-royal presidents.

In October 2025, Biya won an unprecedented eighth presidential term in an election that was highly contested by opposition parties, which claimed significant electoral fraud and that the official results did not represent popular votes.

Source: Africa. Business insider

5, August 2026

U.S.-Cameroon economic dialogue set for August 27 ⁰

A strategic economic bilateral dialogue between Cameroon and the United States is scheduled for August 27, 2026, as both countries seek to strengthen trade and investment ties and improve the business climate for private-sector operators.

The dialogue was announced during an audience between Transport Minister Jean Ernest Masséna Ngallè Bibèhè and the United States Interim Chargé d’Affaires in Cameroon, John G. Robinson. According to information released by the Ministry of Transport, the dialogue will focus on three main objectives: improving the business climate between the two countries, identifying trade opportunities and promoting investment partnerships.

The announcement confirms remarks made by John G. Robinson during a conference organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Cameroon (AmCham) on the sidelines PROMOTE 2026. At the event, he said the United States seeks to be “a reliable partner for economic growth” through trade, investment and technology transfer rather than traditional aid programs.

The forthcoming dialogue takes place against a backdrop of expanding economic exchanges between the two countries. American and Cameroonian businesses have recently pursued partnerships in agribusiness, poultry production, energy and hospitality. US agencies, including the International Development Finance Corporation, the Export-Import Bank of the United States and the US Commercial Service, continue to support financing, export promotion and commercial partnerships involving African businesses.

According to AmCham Cameroon, business missions and commercial exchanges have already contributed to investment projects in several sectors, while financing mechanisms from US institutions continue to support eligible ventures involving American and Cameroonian partners.

The August 27 dialogue is expected to provide a platform to identify new investment opportunities and deepen commercial cooperation between the two economies, with transport among the sectors under discussion.

Source: Business in Cameroon

4, August 2026

AI offers lifeline to developing economies in an era of weak growth ⁰

Artificial intelligence (AI) could allow developing countries to do in a decade what might otherwise take a century—provided that governments act swiftly to close the gaps in power, connectivity, skills, and institutional quality that threaten to leave them behind, according to the World Bank Group’s World Development Report 2026: The Promise of Artificial Intelligence.

The report, released today, finds that jobs in high-income countries are more than three times as likely to be at risk of automation by generative AI than those in low- and middle-income countries, where 4.5% of existing jobs are at risk, compared with 14.2% in high-income countries. At the same time, 16.2% of jobs in developing economies could see productivity meaningfully boosted by AI — close to the 18.7% expected in high-income countries. The greatest promise for developing countries lies not in replacing workers, but in amplifying what they can do.

“AI has thrown developing economies a lifeline, and they should seize it”, said Indermit Gill, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist of the World Bank Group. “They do not need large models or big data centers to reap its benefits. By adapting small, low-cost AI tools to local conditions, they can bring better medical care, education, judicial services and agricultural extension within reach of millions. But they must hurry: AI is spreading faster and is more context-specific than earlier general-purpose technologies like electricity and the internet. World Development Report 2026 shows how developing countries are responding—and succeeding.”

The report is the first comprehensive assessment of AI’s implications for developing countries, revealing how businesses and governments in these countries have begun to use AI. It finds that AI is already helping people, businesses, and governments solve problems, analyze information, improve forecasts, and deliver services at a larger scale. These capabilities are especially valuable in countries where trained professionals, reliable records, and public capacity are often limited. AI tools can make it easier for doctors to diagnose patients, farmers to improve crop decisions, and businesses to become more productive. Governments, too, could use AI to improve tax collection, social programs, disaster response, health care, and education.

Developing economies today are in the midst of their weakest average growth performance in three decades. AI could significantly boost that performance before the end of the 2020s while delivering tangible benefits to people, the report finds. The opportunity is not guaranteed, however. The most advanced AI systems are being built by a small number of countries and companies, while many developing economies still lack the power, internet access, data, skills, and institutions needed to use AI effectively. Without deliberate action, AI could widen gaps between countries, increase inequality within them, concentrate market power, weaken trust in public institutions, and create new risks for safety, rights, and social cohesion.

The report sets out a clear, three-step path: adopt available tools, adapt them to local conditions, and — over time — advance toward frontier AI development. This sequenced approach helps countries avoid costly and inefficient attempts to replicate advanced AI before the foundational conditions are in place.

“The window to get this right is narrow,” said Gaurav Nayyar, Director of the World Development Report 2026. “AI presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to solve problems that have resisted solutions for generations. Developing countries that build the foundations now—power, connectivity, skills, and institutions—will be positioned to adopt and adapt AI for their people.”

None of this is possible without first investing in the basics. In Sub-Saharan Africa, nearly one-third of rural schools still lack reliable electricity, and more than two-thirds lack dependable internet access. Closing this gap is already a priority — the World Bank Group is working with partners through Mission 300 to provide energy access to 300 million people across Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030, laying the foundation for broader digital and AI inclusion.

Countries also need to expand access to computing power and improve the availability of local data, including in local languages, so AI tools can be tailored to serve their own people and economies. Governments should make it easier for new firms to attract investment, test ideas, and scale what works. Many AI pilots are already underway, but the bigger challenge is knowing which ones deliver results. Better evidence, stronger skills, and clearer procurement and evaluation frameworks will be essential.

Building public trust is equally important. As AI evolves rapidly, governments should begin by drawing on voluntary industry standards to encourage responsible use, anchored in international cooperation to prevent regulatory fragmentation. When voluntary measures fall short, governments should apply existing laws to address harms directly. Improved public services and better learning outcomes in schools will reinforce trust — but if AI embeds bias in government decisions or erodes data privacy, that trust will be difficult to recover.

3, August 2026

Dangote Cement Cameroon: expansion meets weaker sales ⁰

Dangote Cement’s Cameroon subsidiary sold 596,800 metric tons of cement in the first half of 2026, down 13.1% from a year earlier, according to the company’s unaudited half-year results published on July 29, 2026.

After selling 300,000 tons between January and March, as reported in its first-quarter results, second-quarter sales can therefore be calculated at 296,800 tons. That was down 1.1% from the previous quarter.

The lack of a rebound contrasts with the subsidiary’s June 2026 announcement that it plans to increase its production capacity in Cameroon to 3 million tons a year from 1.5 million by 2028. Annualizing first-half sales would put full-year volume at 1.194 million tons. That would be equivalent to 79.6% of current capacity but only 39.8% of the planned capacity.

These ratios are not capacity utilization rates. The published results provide neither the Douala plant’s actual production nor changes in inventories. They nonetheless illustrate the scale of the commercial challenge: based on a simple extrapolation of the first-half pace, selling 3 million tons would require sales to increase by about 2.5 times.

Two Quarters Without a Rebound

Dangote’s reported 13.1% decline indicates that first-half 2025 sales were about 686,800 tons. The subsidiary therefore sold about 90,000 fewer tons than a year earlier.

The decline appears to have eased, however. After a 15.8% drop in the first quarter, the year-on-year decrease between April and June can be estimated at about 10.2%. The calculation is based on the rounded half-year and quarterly figures reported by the group and should therefore be treated as an approximation.

That relative improvement does not yet amount to a recovery. The calculated second-quarter volume of 296,800 tons remained below the 300,000 tons sold in the first quarter.

Dangote attributed the weak performance to a slowdown in construction following the elections, delays in public spending and slower infrastructure project execution. In its half-year results, the group described the weakness as temporary and forecast a recovery as spending and project execution resume.

That is the company’s assessment. Available public data do not make it possible to separate the effect of slower construction activity from potential market share shifts toward other producers. Without comprehensive statistics covering all cement producers in the first half of 2026, Dangote’s sales decline also cannot be equated with a similar contraction in national consumption.

The first-half performance largely extends the decline recorded in 2025. That year, volumes at the Douala plant fell 14.1% to 1.2 million tons from 1.4 million in 2024, according to Dangote Cement’s 2025 annual results. Annualizing first-half 2026 sales therefore puts the subsidiary almost exactly at the previous year’s level.

Cameroon’s Role in Dangote’s Regional Clinker Network

Dangote’s Cameroon facility is not an integrated cement plant that produces clinker locally. The group describes it as a grinding plant with annual capacity of 1.5 million tons and a jetty that allows clinker to be unloaded directly at the facility. The semi-finished product is then ground with local pozzolana and gypsum to produce cement.

This configuration links the Cameroon subsidiary to the group’s regional industrial and logistics network. Dangote’s Nigerian plants shipped 754,000 tons of clinker to Cameroon and Ghana in the first half of 2026, up 56.7% from a year earlier, according to the cement producer’s half-year results. The group does not disclose how the volume was divided between the two countries.

A Dangote Cement strategy presentation published in June 2026 sets out the economic rationale behind the network. According to the group, the model “maximises utilisation of Nigeria’s asset base” and “leverages Nigeria’s integrated plants to feed African sites without needing to build further kilns.” In other words, Nigerian kilns serve as a regional production base supplying African grinding plants without the need to build new kilns in each market.

The model allows Dangote to increase utilization of its Nigerian plants and limit the industrial investment required in the countries it supplies. But it keeps Cameroon at the downstream end of the value chain, with limestone still being burned into clinker abroad.

The significance of the Cameroon project therefore extends beyond the additional capacity. The planned facility’s configuration is equally important. A new grinding plant would increase local cement-grinding capacity but would also increase the need for imported clinker. An integrated cement plant equipped with a kiln and supplied by a limestone quarry would represent a more significant shift in the industry’s structure.

That distinction is particularly important because Cameroon imported 3,106,782 tons of clinker in 2025 for 97.317 billion CFA francs, according to the preliminary foreign trade report published by the National Institute of Statistics in April 2026. The purchases rose 20.5% by volume and 14.7% by value from 2024. Clinker accounted for 1.9% of the total value of Cameroon’s imports.

A 3 Million-Ton Target First Announced in 2015

The 3 million-ton figure is not new. When the plant was inaugurated in 2015, the Prime Minister’s Office said the facility was expected to reach 1.5 million tons by the end of that year and that its “actual capacity,” according to its promoter, was 3 million tons.

Eleven years later, Dangote still lists its installed capacity in Cameroon at 1.5 million tons a year.

The project resurfaced publicly on July 21, 2026. After a meeting with Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute, Dangote Group Vice President Devakumar Edwin announced plans to build a new plant in the country’s economic capital. “We also intend to build a new cement plant in Douala. We will visit sites to determine where to locate this plant,” he said, according to remarks reported by Business & Finance International on July 23.

The statement indicates that the project remains at a preliminary stage. Dangote said it was still searching for a site, with no location finalized. No publicly available information specifies the cost of the Cameroon investment, the construction schedule, the new plant’s capacity or whether it will include a clinker kiln.

The location itself also remains unclear. In June 2026, Dangote Cement Cameroon referred both to an expansion of the Douala facility and the revival of a project for a second 1.5 million-ton plant in an industrial zone in Yaoundé. A month later, the group’s management announced a new cement plant in Douala. Dangote has not publicly clarified whether these are separate projects or whether the company has shifted the proposed location.

Sinoma Agreement Does Not Specify Cameroon Project Costs

The agreement signed with Sinoma International Engineering on February 28, 2026, does not resolve these uncertainties. It covers an estimated investment of more than $1 billion and 12 construction, expansion or modernization projects in seven African countries, including Cameroon, according to information published by Agence Ecofin on March 4, 2026.

No public breakdown identifies the amount allocated to Cameroon. The agreement also does not specify whether the local investment will take the form of a grinding plant, an integrated cement plant or a simple expansion of the existing facility.

The agreement alone therefore does not establish that work to double capacity has begun. It mainly confirms that Cameroon is among the markets included in Dangote Cement’s continental expansion strategy.

The proposed expansion therefore raises two issues. Commercially, Dangote would need to restore growth, gain market share or develop new outlets to absorb the additional capacity. Industrially, it must clarify whether the investment will only expand local grinding capacity or also reduce Cameroon’s dependence on imported clinker.

Until the site, financing, timetable and technical configuration are disclosed, the increase to 3 million tons remains a stated target. It comes as Dangote’s Cameroon sales have remained at about 300,000 tons per quarter since the beginning of 2026.

Source: Business in Cameroon

1, August 2026

CPDM Crime Syndicate: 3 state-owned companies account for 93% of public enterprise debt ⁰

Three state-owned companies—SONARA, Camair-Co, and CAMTEL—account for nearly all of the direct domestic debt currently reported for Cameroon’s public enterprises, underscoring how a handful of companies dominate the government’s commercial-sector debt exposure.

According to data from the Autonomous Sinking Fund (CAA) analyzed by Investir au Cameroun, the three companies carried a combined CFA297.3 billion ($510 million) in direct domestic debt as of the end of June 2026, representing 93% of the CFA319.6 billion outstanding across public enterprises and establishments.

The figure does not include floating debt or the liabilities of the Cameroon Electricity Company (Socadel), which are still being assessed.

The reported debt stock was unchanged from May. However, it declined by 0.8% over three months and by 8.3% year over year. These changes apply only to direct domestic debt contracted by public entities and exclude other categories of liabilities tracked separately by the CAA.

SONARA Alone Represents Nearly 60% of the Total

With CFA191.3 billion in outstanding debt, the National Refining Company (SONARA) remains by far the country’s most indebted public enterprise in this category, accounting for 59.9% of the total portfolio.

The CAA breaks down SONARA’s debt into CFA162.4 billion in bank loans and CFA28.8 billion owed to suppliers. The rounded figures add up to CFA191.2 billion, leaving a CFA100 million difference from the published total, likely due to rounding in the report.

Despite remaining the largest debtor, SONARA has reduced its outstanding debt by CFA8.2 billion since December 2025, when it stood at CFA199.5 billion. The 4.1% decline comes as the company continues to seek financing for the rehabilitation of its refinery, whose operations were halted after a fire in May 2019.

Camair-Co ranks second with CFA62.4 billion, equal to 19.5% of the reported debt stock. Its outstanding debt has remained unchanged since December 2025.

CAMTEL completes the top three with CFA43.6 billion, or 13.6% of the total. The state-owned telecommunications operator reduced its domestic debt by CFA5.9 billion, or 11.9%, compared with the CFA49.5 billion recorded at the end of June 2025.

All other public entities combined account for just CFA22.3 billion, or 7% of the portfolio. The Cameroon Development Corporation carries CFA9.4 billion in debt, followed by FEICOM with CFA7.6 billion, Camwater with CFA5.2 billion, and the Port Authority of Douala with CFA100 million.

Floating Debt Adds Another CFA156.5 Billion

The 93% concentration does not include the floating debt of public enterprises, which the CAA tracks separately.

That category totaled CFA156.5 billion at the end of June 2026, down 19.5% from a year earlier.

Tax and customs obligations make up the largest share at 68.6%, or about CFA107.4 billion. Commercial debt accounts for 21.3%, or CFA33.3 billion. Academic debt represents about CFA13 billion, or 8.3% of the total, while social security obligations amount to CFA2.8 billion, or 1.8%.

The breakdown shows that the liabilities of public enterprises extend beyond bank borrowing and supplier debt to include unpaid taxes, customs duties, social contributions, and other obligations accumulated through day-to-day operations.

Socadel Could Significantly Change the Debt Picture

The CAA notes that the CFA319.6 billion reported for direct domestic debt does not yet include the liabilities of Socadel, created following the renationalization of former power utility Eneo.

The assessment of those liabilities is still underway, based on a preliminary estimate of roughly CFA800 billion.

Taken on its own, that indicative amount is about two and a half times larger than the entire direct domestic debt currently reported for public enterprises. However, it cannot be added directly to the CFA319.6 billion until the CAA finalizes the assessment and determines how the liabilities should be classified, including bank debt, supplier obligations, tax liabilities, social contributions, and any overlapping claims involving other public entities.

As a result, while SONARA, Camair-Co, and CAMTEL currently account for 93% of the direct domestic debt officially reported by the CAA, that concentration reflects only the published portfolio. Once Socadel’s liabilities are incorporated, the financial profile of Cameroon’s state-owned commercial sector could change substantially.

Source: Business in Cameroon