Southern Cameroons Crisis: CDC secures CFA4.6 bln loan to modernize processing plants ⁰

The Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) is set to receive fresh financial support just days after reaching an agreement to clear part of its wage arrears. The Minister of Economy, Planning and Regional Development has been authorized to sign a €7.1 million ($7.6 million) commercial loan with Standard Chartered Bank in London, equal to about CFA4.6 billion.

The funding will cover the supply and installation of processing plants for palm oil, margarine and rubber, sectors considered strategic for diversifying and modernizing the operations of the state-owned company.

Clearing part of wage debt

The loan follows a broader financial recovery effort that included settling part of the company’s salary arrears. On September 17, 2025, the government signed a deal with FedhEn Capital, Société Générale Capital Securities Central Africa (arranger), Société Générale Cameroun, CCA Bank and AFG Bank. The operation cleared CFA15.7 billion in back pay owed to nearly 20,000 workers, as part of a plan to address a total salary debt of CFA35.7 billion accumulated between 2018 and 2022.

Company weakened by Anglophone crisis

CDC, the largest agribusiness in Cameroon and the country’s second-largest employer after the state, has been heavily affected by the sociopolitical crisis in the Anglophone regions. Between 2019 and 2021, it posted losses of CFA38.7 billion and saw its workforce shrink from 22,000 to around 15,000, according to the Technical Commission for the Rehabilitation of Public Enterprises (CTR).

With financial support from Standard Chartered Bank, the government aims to strengthen CDC’s competitiveness and production capacity. The installation of new factories is expected to add value to its output, reduce reliance on imports, and support jobs in a region hit hard by the crisis. Between debt relief and industrial revival, the state-owned firm now appears to be moving toward stabilization.

Source: Business in Cameroon