A two-day sub-regional experts’ adhoc meeting began in Yaounde on wednesday to propose common strategies for more beneficial cooperation with emerging countries. The recent changes in the world economic order in favour of emerging economies such as China, India and Brazil have reinforced South-South cooperation to which Sub-Saharan African countries increasingly have recourse in order to attain development objectives. To fuel production, emerging economies import agricultural products, raw materials and crude oil from the Central African sub-region while increasing development aid. However, they export manufactured products in large quantities to the sub-region, inundating the markets, causing environmental problems and weakening manufacturing capacities.

These were parts of the findings of a study tabled yesterday to various experts operating in socio-economic development in Central Africa who were meeting in an adhoc meeting in Yaounde yesterday, March 9. Holding under the theme, “New trends in South-South cooperation and triangular cooperation: Impacts on countries in Central Africa”, the two-day meeting was organised by the Central Africa Office of the Economic Commission for Africa, BSR-AC/CEA to enable the experts enrich the said study on the subject and brainstorm on strategies to convert South-South cooperation into a win-win partnership and purveyor of capital and technology that the sub-regional economy needs to modernise.

Speaking at the opening of the meeting yesterday, the Senior Economic Affairs Officer of the BSR-AC/CEA, Aboubacry Demba Lom said South-South cooperation had many opportunities for the countries of the sub-region as well as potential risks and costs that had to be mastered early, so as to halt long-term negative effects. While inviting the experts to brainstorm on strategies that will enable the countries draw more benefits from cooperation with emerging economies, he cautioned that in spite of the potentials and opportunities in Central African countries, the absence of a common strategy vis-à-vis emerging countries will limit the sub-region’s capacity to negotiate, act or propose.

The experts’ discussions and analyses will end today with the expected endorsement of the study and recommendations to enable countries in the Central African sub-region benefit fully from south-south cooperation in order to boost growth.

The adhoc meeting precedes a two-day intergovernmental experts’ committee session that starts tomorrow in Yaounde under the theme, “Opportunities for Industrial Policies in Central Africa.”