The bills were tabled during the second plenary sitting of the November session.

Members of the Finance and Budget Committee of the National Assembly will soon examine the Settlement bill for the 2009 financial year and another bill on the organisation of leasing in Cameroon. The members of the Foreign Affairs Committee on their part, already have before them for examination, the bill to authorise the President of the Republic to ratify the African Youth Charter adopted by the 7^th session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union on 2 July 2006 in Banjul, the Gambia. The three bills were tabled during the second plenary sitting of the National Assembly for the November session yesterday, November 9, presided at by the First Vice President of the National Assembly, Hon. Hilarion Etong.

Government in the explanatory statement said the bill on the organisation of leasing in Cameroon is aimed at facilitating access to financing for economic operators. This is because leasing is credit transaction intended to finance the acquisition and use of movable and immovable property for a professional purpose, and constitutes an innovative, appropriate option enabling Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, which can hardly afford any guarantees or enough equity to finance their investments. The bill is intended to tackle the difficulty in accessing bank facilities investors face in Cameroon.

The Settlement bill for the 2009 financial year on its part, concerns the 2009 State budget that stood at FCFA 2, 301.4 billion.

The bill to authorise the President of the Republic to ratify the African Youth Charter adopted by the 7^th session of the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union on 2 July 2006 in Banjul, marks a concrete step towards youth mainstreaming in the member countries of the African Union. The charter entered into force on August 8, 2009 and is based on the principle that peace, development and prosperity in Africa remain inextricably linked to the actions of the youth and their ability to fully assume their responsibilities in the continent’s development process. Comprised of 31 articles, the charter is divided into two parts, defining the rights and responsibilities of youths. Cameroon’s ratification of the charter will help boost the youth participation in national and regional development processes and foster the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.