Business

12, March 2018

World’s Second Floating LNG Project Starts Production In Cameroon ⁰

Norwegian shipping firm Golar LNG on Monday said liquefied natural gas (LNG) production had started at its floating LNG production platform in Cameroon, the world’s second working example of the nascent technology.

The trading arm of Russia’s Gazprom has purchased the entire 1.2 million tonne per annum output from Golar’s FLNG platform, the Hilli Episeyo, for eight years.

The deal was agreed in late 2015 between Golar, Gazprom Marketing and Trading, Cameroon’s state-run Societe Nationale des Hydrocarbures and Perenco Cameroon. Golar LNG gave no indication of when the Hilli would achieve commercial LNG production or begin exports.

First LNG deliveries were initially targeted for the second half of 2017. The first ever FLNG project came on stream in Malaysia last year, developed by state-run energy giant Petronas, but the project has operated at a fraction of its production capacity.

Source: Reuters

10, March 2018

“Better few viable banks than dozen failing banks” Tanzania President ⁰

Tanzania’s President John Magufuli has ordered the country’s central bank not to bail out any struggling banks as East Africa’s third-largest economy tries to control rising bad debts in the sector.

A spike in non-performing loans over the past two years has hit local bank profits and choked off new lending to the private sector, undermining economic growth in the country.

Magufuli, who has taken on foreign mining firms since coming to power in 2015, said there would be no state help for lenders, accusing them of misappropriating taxpayers’ funds used to bail them out in the past.

“It’s better to have a few viable banks than dozens of failing banks,” he said late on Friday at the inauguration of a new bank branch in northwestern Tanzania.

“I will not give any money to failing banks.” Tanzania has about 40 licensed banks, but the country’s financial services sector is dominated by only a handful of big lenders, such as CRDB Bank.

Bad debts as a proportion of the total bank loans rose to 11.7 percent in December 2017, more than twice the maximum target of 5 percent, up from 10.6 percent in June 2017, the latest central bank data showed.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in January the growth of credit to the private sector had stagnated, partly due to the deteriorating quality of the loans.

It urged Tanzania’s government to tackle the bad debts as a priority to reduce financial sector vulnerabilities and revive credit growth.

The (central) Bank of Tanzania revoked the licences of five “critically undercapitalised” community banks in January to protect financial stability in the country.

The closure of the small banks came after Magufuli ordered the central bank in December to take action against failing financial institutions. Eight such small regional lenders have lost their licences since last year.

REUTERS

7, March 2018

US: Trump’s top economic adviser Cohn resigns over tariff plan ⁰

Top White House economic adviser Gary Cohn has announced his resignation following US President Donald Trump’s controversial plan to impose hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.

Cohn,the director of the National Economic Council, handed in his notice on Tuesday after a little more than a year on the job.

His resignation came after Trump announced plans last week to impose a 25-percent tariff on steel imports and a 10-percent one on aluminum, a move that Cohn had firmly opposed.

“It has been an honor to serve my country and enact pro-growth economic policies to benefit the American people,” the adviser said in a statement about his resignation, refusing to provide further details. “I am grateful to the President for giving me this opportunity and wish him and the Administration great success in the future.”

Trump’s plans to impose the tariffs has reportedly triggered an intense debate within the oval office between Cohn and other advocates of free trade, on one side, and protectionist advisers on the other.

In response to Cohn’s resignation, Trump said in a statement that “Gary has been my chief economic adviser and did a superb job in driving our agenda … He is a rare talent, and I thank him for his dedicated service to the American people.”

The president also said in a tweet that he would make a decision soon on appointing a new chief economic adviser after Cohn’s resignation from the post.

“Will be making a decision soon on the appointment of new Chief Economic Advisor. Many people wanting the job – will choose wisely!” Trump wrote.

Unveiled on Thursday, the plan sparked a flurry of criticism both at home and aboard.

Trump believes the tariffs will safeguard US jobs, but economists say the measures will destroy more jobs than they create and will hurt the very US companies and workers that Trump has said he aims to protect.

Top US energy industry trade groups, which rely on imported steel for drilling equipment, pipelines, liquefied natural gas terminals, and refineries, have issued statements, calling on Trump to scrap the plan.

The decision also drew complaints and counter-threats from the European Commission, Canada, Mexico, Australia and the world’s biggest steel producer, China.

Beijing said it was ready to “take necessary measures” against Washington if it aimed to harm China’s economic interests following the imposed tariffs.

During his presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly blamed what he called unfair trade deals and allegedly abusive practices by countries such as China and Mexico for the massive US trade deficit and the loss of high-paying American factory jobs.

Trump lashes out at EU trade rules

Also on Tuesday, the US president criticized the European Union’s trade rules as the 28-member bloc threatened to take retaliatory measures against Washington’s new trade tariffs.

“The United States has been taken advantage of by other countries, both friendly and not so friendly, for many, many decades, and we have a trade deficit of $800bn per year, and that’s not going to happen with me,” Trump said at a press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven at the White House.

US President Donald Trump and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven hold a joint press conference at the White House on March 6, 2018, in Washington, DC. (Photo by AFP)

“The European Union has been particularly tough on the United States. They make it almost impossible to do business with them, and yet they send their cars and everything else back into the United States. They can do whatever they like but if they do that, then we put a big tax of 25 percent on their cars and believe me, they won’t be doing it very long,” he added.

Trump had earlier warned to impose more tariffs on car imports from the European Union despite the new tariff plan, with member states being concerned about the impact of the new tariffs on their economies.

Following Trump’s announcement, European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker complained that the proposed tariffs were a blatant intervention that amounted to protectionism, vowing to act “firmly” against the plan.

“We will not sit idly while our industry is hit with unfair measures that put thousands of European jobs at risk,” Juncker said.

EU’s response matches similar measures during a 2003 “steel war” unleashed by George W. Bush’s administration that eventually prompted the US to back down before the EU carried out its threat.

Source: Presstv

6, March 2018

Amid probe, Biya bars GM of Camtel, Deputy from leaving the country ⁰

David Nkoto Emane, the General Manager of Cameroon Telecommunications (Camtel) – a state-owned telephone operator has been barred from leaving the country.

The decision also concerns Richard Maga, the deputy general manager of the company including some of their staff.

The decision to prevent Camtel’s officials from leaving Cameroonian territory was taken on the instructions of President Biya after a correspondence from the State Audit Office, which audited the company’s accounts recently in Yaoundé.

By Rita Akana

1, March 2018

Cameroon Gambling – youth and old going-gaga over new gaming machines ⁰

The China coin operated tabletop gambling machines have become so much in vogue in most parts of Cameroon, with youth going gaga-over and turning out to be the main users.Playing games of chance have become the latest fad in most towns and villages in the country. With FCFA 100, small attractive machines stationed in roadside shops and beer parlours in the nooks and corners of the country has become an epicentre of attraction for both young and old as huge masses line up in front of them in order to make money.

When Cameroon Tribune (CT) called on some of the towns and villages in the country found out that many young people are fascinated and hooked up to these machines. Most operators wish to conceal about the gambling business and how the machines got into their shops. During a trip to the Mintom Sub-division in the Dja and Lobo Division in the South Region, CT reporters met a throng of youth inserting FCFA 100 coins into one of such machines. When asked the name of the machine and the reasons for the different football teams written on the machine, none of them had an answer. Information on the machines is written in English Language, in some cases with erroneous spelling such as football being spelt as “foorball”. The only thing most Mintom youths, just like those in other neighbourhoods in Yaounde could say about the gambling machine is where to insert FCFA 100, the start button and the “retreat” button in case the machine indicates you have won some coins which could be between one coin (FCFA 100) to 50 coins or FCFA 5,000.

CT gathered that the name of the machine is China coin operated table top gambling machines. On these machines, is written only old or new FCFA 100 coins are accepted with a warning: “not for persons under 18 years”.It is a portable machine that carries the names of popular football teams in the world such as Chelsea, FC Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, Juventus and Cameroon in some. Each team is found several times on the playing board, representing a particular number of coins. If an individual picks a team which is later selected by the machine as the winning team, the machine tells you the number of coins that team represents. If the selected team does not match with what the machine selects, the player loses. One of such machines is found in a roadside shop at the Mvog-Atangana Mballa neighbourhood in Yaounde. The owner of the shop refused to comment on how he got the machine. All he said was that the operator of the machine is not around. When asked the contacts of the operator, the shopkeeper said he does not have. After some days, the machine was no longer available at the spot.

At another neighbourhood in Yaounde, the bar attendant who refused to be identified said the machine belongs to “Chinese people”. When asked the contacts of the “Chinese people” he replied that they do not speak French or English and that one can only talk to them through an interpreter. But he needed the consent of the interpreter before handing his contacts to CT reporters, a thing he has not been ready to do so far. However, a bar operator said the machines were brought into the country by some Chinese businessmen residing in the Elig-Essono neighbourhood in Yaounde.

As CT reporters tried to know the exact location of the businessmen, the bar owner quickly said: “They are in a home, not an open shop.” Before placing the machines in any shop or bar, the Chinese partner gets into a deal with the bar owner to give them 30 percent of profit each time they come to empty the content of the machines.

The machine is computerised and programmed by the Chinese. The machine records the number of coins inserted and the number of players that won. Thus, each week a Chinese is seen collecting the machine to withdraw the numerous coins of FCFA 100 left within. These machines have become the best playground for many young people in the country. Some of them, in their school attire, are seen gambling for several hours. Recently in Yaounde around the Soa neighbourhood, the forces of law and order went on the offensive to rid the area of these machines.

Source: cameroon-tribune.cm

28, February 2018

Nigeria in talks with firms to revamp oil refineries ⁰

Nigeria’s state oil firm NNPC is in the final stages of talks with two consortiums that include top traders, energy and oil companies to revamp its rundown refineries.

The move is aimed at helping Nigeria, Africa’s biggest crude producer, save billions of dollars on fuel imports.

the two consortiums would be paid via the offtake of refined products rather than cash, obliging them to revive the refineries and keep them running smoothly to ensure they earn profit from their investments.

Nigeria’s refineries operate far below their combined capacity of 445,000 barrels per day due to years of neglect, as well as theft from pipelines and sabotage.

This forces the country to import nearly all the fuel it consumes, a hefty burden because of price caps on gasoline.

The government said it spent $5.8 billion on imports since late 2017.

The first consortium comprising Vitol, Saipem, General Electric, Sahara Group and MRS Oil Nigeria will refurbish the Warri and Kaduna state refineries.

The second consortium is made up of Trafigura, Eni, Cepsa and Oando who will repair the refineries in Port Harcourt.

Source: Reuters

21, February 2018

Deal Signed To Extend French Cameroun – Chad Railway Network ⁰

The Governments of Cameroon and Chad have signed an aide-memoire with the African Development Bank (AfDB) to extend the railway network linking Ngaoundere in Cameroon and Djamena in Chad.

The signing ceremony was chaired by Cameroon’s Minister of Transport, Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o and conducted in the presence of the Director General of Cooperation and Regional Integration, Charles Assamba Ongondo.

During the ceremony, Ongondo explained that the document was in relation to feasibility studies carried out ahead of the construction of the railway linking both towns. He said the three signatories had earlier on, in consultation with the Cameroon – Chad Railway Commission, agreed to carry out feasibility studies for the railway.

He noted that, after the signing, the board of AfDB’s board will go through the documentation and decided if they will continue financing the project.

Minister Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o also indicated the position paper will be presented in the next board meeting of the Cameroon – Chad Railway Commission.

The railway extension is expected to cover a distance of 900km and add to the transport networks linking both countries. The project will be financed to the tune of approximately 5,000 billion CFAF.

Source: Railways Africa

13, February 2018

Cameroon: Second-hand goods users and dealers lament over high prices ⁰

The second-hand goods business has known heydays in Cameroon, but current trends are a little disturbing for both users and importers of these goods. In Cameroon more than 80 percent of the population survives thanks to second-hand goods imported mostly from Europe and North America.

Users of these products are usually considered as low-income earners whose resources cannot let them walk into some of the chic shops in the country. In the past, while the rich considered these goods as being underneath their social class, users of imported second-hand good held that these goods were not only more durable than brand new goods, they were within reach financially.

Today, as the prices of goods escalate worldwide, these goods have become rare and obtaining them is becoming a nightmare to the population. All over the country, consumers are complaining that these goods have become very difficult to access due to high prices.

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Talking to some second-hand household equipment retailers at the Obili and Essos neighborhoods in Yaounde, we figured out that the high prices are due to high importation cost importers have to pay to get the goods into Cameroon.

While retailers blame this unfortunate situation on importers of these goods, the importers, for their part, blame the unfortunate situation on high taxes, corrupt customs officers and high custom duties. Many Cameroonians hold that D.I.T, the company in charge of imported containers at the Douala seaport, is also to blame due to arbitrary decisions and corrupt practices that are hurting Cameroonians financially and the company’s reputation.

Focusing on second-hand cars which are highly solicited by Cameroonians, we were told by dealers that, the prices of these cars had increased because the government had tactically increased some taxes at the Douala Port. Some of the taxes on second-hand cars, they say, can be witnessed at SOCOMAR, a company in charge of imported cars at the Douala seaport. Many used car importers claim that some taxes have increased from about CFAF 21,000 to about CFAF 35,000 for vehicles whose first registration was in 2000 and from about CFAF 18,000 to about CFAF 25,000 for vehicles whose first registration was in 1992 and up.

Meanwhile, duty has increased from about 67% to about 87%. Some of the taxes that are posing challenges to car importers and clearing agents include the “stationing tax” and “the entry or pass tax”. The stationing tax has increased from CFAF 350 to CFAF 1,650 per day, while the entry or pass tax has increased from CFAF 500 to CFAF 1,850 per day.

The stationing tax is the tax paid per day for space occupied by an imported car at the SOCOMAR car park. Despite threats of a strike action by car importers and clearing agents, SOCOMAR authorities are turning a deaf ear. Clearing a car at the SOCOMAR car park takes more than 14 days instead of 5 days as it was in the past.

According to the car importers and clearing agents, the increase in these two taxes in particular and the dereliction duty on the part of SOCOMAR authorities are deliberate attempts by these authorities to extort money from them.

Many used car importers hold that SOCOMAR is one of the most corrupt company at the Douala seaport. It is common knowledge that custom officers and other taxation officers usually use coded language like “five greens, two greens, one green and half green” to refer to CFAF 50,000, CFAF 20,000, CFAF 10,000 and CFAF 5,000 respectively when asking for a bribe.

Talking to some clearing agents on the coded language used by custom officials, they all angrily referred to a certain Muslim lady who is an Inspector of customs at SOCOMAR whose name Cameroon Concord News has decided to withhold.

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It should be recalled that on December 22, 2017, the National Anti-Corruption Commission (CONAC) published a list of 21 custom officers who own many luxurious buildings in Cameroon and bank accounts of over CFAF 134 million. Cameroonians are still waiting to see if legal actions will be taken against them.

Many are also looking forward to this ill-gotten wealth to be recovered by the state. On August 4, 2016, Cameroon and the European Union signed an economic partnership agreement exempting some goods from taxes and custom duty with the objective of improving the country’s economic situation.

Despite these exemptions, the country’s economy is not improving as thought. Many importers are still facing the same situation and corruption that has made life challenging to the ordinary man is still persisting and blighting many lives.

Meanwhile, President Paul Biya in his February 10, 2018, speech to the country’s youths, blamed the economic hardship in the country on the insecurity in the Northern Region as well as the Anglophone crisis that has been playout for over fifteen months.

He tactically avoided touching on the corrupt activities of government officials who due to continuous unnecessary increase in state budget have created loopholes that are helping some individuals to line their pockets to the detriment of ordinary citizens who are made to pay some of those punitive taxes.

For two years running, custom duty and other taxes have been increased and this is discouraging many young businessmen who want to join the goods importation business. This is not pleasing to many young Cameroonians who hold that business will be an opportunity for them to escape poverty and unemployment that have transformed the country into a living hell.

By Meshack Mbeng Enowmbi in Yaounde

13, February 2018

Construction starts on Cameroon’s first destination retail mall ⁰

Actis (www.Act.is), a leading growth markets investor has started construction on “Douala Grand Mall & Business Park”, Cameroon’s first destination retail & leisure mall.

Developed by Actis and local partner Craft Development, Douala Grand Mall will comprise of 18,000 square metres of retail and leisure space, close to Bonapriso in Cameroon’s largest city. The mall will include multiple restaurants, a children’s play zone, a five screen cinema, a supermarket and retail shops. The Mall is Phase 1 of the development which also includes a business park hosting a hotel and corporate offices spaces.

To continue its strategic roll-out in modern trade, CFAO the international group specialised in distribution in Africa, has signed an agreement to set up and operate a Carrefour Market in the shopping mall and the leading Hospitality & Entertainment conglomerate Genesis Group is the cinema anchor.

The South African contractor, Raubex has been appointed as the general contractor and is now mobilised on site. A formal ground-breaking will take place mid-2018. The project is expected to create over 4,500 jobs using local material and labour and has been granted tax incentives following a convention signed with the Government of the Republic of Cameroon.

Amanda Jean-Baptiste, Partner, Head of West Africa, Real Estate at Actis, said: “Actis is thrilled to reach this key milestone in delivering Cameroon’s first destination retail mall; anchored by two flagship brands seeking to benefit from the growing consumer power. The Mall will make a significant contribution to job creation and other economic indicators in the Cameroonian economy.”

Mathurin Jidjouc Kamdem CEO of Craft Development added: this is a landmark project that will provide the vibrant city of Douala with one of its biggest international standard mixed-used development, with over 4,500 jobs created in both the construction and the operation phases.

Actis is also invested in the electricity sector in Cameroon. In partnership with the government Actis holds a majority interest in the country’s electricity utility, Eneo. Actis is in advanced discussions with the Government to facilitate further significant investment into the energy sector to continue to expand the electricity grid and improve the quality of supply. Actis has also established Honoris United Universities, a pan-African higher education business which brings together the most prestigious universities, Actis also has a strong presence across the wider Francophone Africa region including energy, education and healthcare businesses.

Source: Internationalsupermarketnews

12, February 2018

More than 2,200 Filipino citizens in Kuwait seek repatriation ⁰

The Philippine labor minister says over 2,200 Filipinos are ready to take up an offer by President Rodrigo Duterte to repatriate workers from Kuwait amid reports of abuse.

Silvestre Bello III said on Sunday that almost 500 Filipino workers were due to arrive soon.

“We have been informed that as of Friday there were 2,200-plus Filipinos who are willing to go home,” the minister said.

He added that the government would also help repatriated workers find jobs.

“We are into a re-integration programme, we have a programme in place for them,” Bello said, adding, “They will be given a livelihood.”

“We are now in the process of looking for alternative markets. One of them is China and even Russia,” the minister said, without elaborating.

Bello said some of the Filipinos had overstayed their visas in Kuwait and applied for an amnesty.

The minister also stated that the airlines had arranged free charter flights to facilitate the repatriation.

Duterte asked Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific on Friday to provide flights for the Filipinos who wanted to leave Kuwait. The president has said that suspension would remain indefinitely.

A body of a Filipino worker was found in a freezer of an abandoned apartment in Kuwait recently.

Last month, the Philippines suspended sending workers to Kuwait after reports came out that abuse by employers had driven several to suicide.

Kuwait’s Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled al-Jarallah expressed “surprise and sorrow” at Duterte’s remarks in January, saying that legal proceedings had been taken in the four suicide cases mentioned by the president.

The Philippine Foreign Ministry estimates more than 250,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, most of them as domestic helpers. There are also large numbers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Arab monarchies of the Persian Gulf region have come under criticism by international organizations and rights groups due to mistreatment of foreign workers. Millions of poor Asians are working in the Persian Gulf states. Human rights groups say many of the workers suffer exploitation and abuse, including non-payment of wages.

Human Rights Watch and other rights organizations have also slammed mass deportations of migrant workers, which are fairly common in the kingdoms and sheikhdoms, saying they often involve physical abuse and detention in poor conditions.

Last month, a report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) painted a grim picture of the human rights situation in the UAE, raising concern over the torture of prisoners, injustice against foreign workers and discrimination against women in the Persian Gulf state. The report argued that the justice system in the UAE is complex and impedes migrant workers and the stateless from bringing their grievances to justice.