Members of Parliament had it to their fill last Friday November 18 during a plenary session at the Ngoa Ekelle “Glass Palace” while listening to the Prime Minister and Head of Governance, Philemon Yang, present the directions of the 2012 draft State Budget.
After presenting the highlights and achievements during 2011 in the economic, political, cultural, financial and social domains, Philemon Yang remarked that despite a difficult global economic environment marked by public debt crises in major industrial countries, the year 2011 was ending on a positive note with the real Gross Domestic Product, GDP, recording a 4 per cent growth as compared to 3,2 per cent in 2010.
Increased State Budget
Settling on the 2012 State budget, Philemon Yang told Members of Parliament that in using a State budget of FCFA 2,800 billion, up from FCFA 2,571 billion in 2011, government will implement the President of the Republic’s major accomplishment policy that aims at transforming Cameroon into a vast construction site comprising major infrastructure projects which will be vectors of employment for Cameroonian youth. To carry out these planned projects in 2012, he said, emphasis will be laid on productive sectors in conformity with the Growth and Employment Strategy Paper, GESP.
Despite the expected slowdown in economic growth rate of its principal trade partners, Cameroon’s economy is expected to sustain growth due to the dynamic domestic demand and increase in the portfolio of public investments expected to be implemented within the framework of the GESP. The 2012 FCFA 2,800 billion draft budget reposes on parameters such as a real GDP growth rate of 5.5 per cent, an inflation rate of 3 per cent, the price of a barrel of oil at 100 US Dollars and a budget deficit of FCFA 250 billion to be funded by the issue of treasury bonds. The expected FCFA 2,800 billion State revenue will be generated particularly from fiscal revenue estimated at FCFA 1,626 billion and petroleum revenue of FCFA 567 billion, amongst others.
Expenditure will give priority to infrastructure sectors and production with FCFA 1,720 billion as current expenditure. FCFA 287 billion will go for debt servicing.
Significant Projects
Major highlights contained in the economic, financial, social and cultural programme for 2012 include the mechanisation of agriculture, the modernisation of rural infrastructure necessary for the transportion and storage of inputs and products in view of better marketing. The take off of the Agricultural Bank and the Bank for Small and Medium-size Enterprises will facilitate access to loans and increase production.
In the public works sector, significant projects were also announced. These include the construction of a second bridge on the Wouri River in Douala, the construction of the Maroua-Bogo road and the construction of the Ndop-Kumbo section of the Ring Road Project. Others are the construction of a second entry road into Bamenda, the continuation of construction work on the Ekok-Bamenda road, the upgrading of the Kumba-Bachuo Akagbe road as well as the extension of the 10,000 low-cost housing project to 20 other towns such as regional headquarters as well as university and industrial towns. While electricity supply will be boosted with the start by end 2012 of the Kribi Natural Gas-fired Plant, the cities of Yaounde, Douala, Edea, Ngaoundere and Bertoua will see potable water supply networks improved.
Reducing the digital divide will also be a priority. The Prime Minister announced the opening of more than 120 more multipurpose community multimedia centres and the implementation of an e-post project which will accelerate interconnection of the country’s 234 post offices using the optical fibre network. The Prime Minister acknowledged the need to improve the quality of public service rendered to citizens. “Priority will be given to the implementation of results assessment, simplification and rationalisation of administrative procedures as well as the development of human resources,” he said.
Other areas that retained attention included the recruitment of 2,000 more primary school teachers, the creation of professional schools specialised in hotel management, tourism and agriculture; the construction of a Football Institute as well as the construction of the National Institute of Arts and Culture in Mbankomo, near Yaounde.
Improving Fiscal Recovery and Business Climate
This programme, the Prime Minister said, will be based on the 2012 Finance Law that contains proposals for some remarkable fiscal and customs changes for 2012. These include the broadening of the tax base and the enhancement of tax revenue. Tax duties imposed on games of chance will be increased. Efforts will be made to improve the business climate through exemption from VAT of all corporate leasing operations and the importation of agricultural equipment, pharmaceutical products and equipment for the production of solar and wind energy. Moreso, free registration of all acts of constitution, extension and increase of capital will be applied to all enterprises approved and working within the framework of the implementation of major infrastructure projects.
A round of applause by the representatives of the people at the end of the Prime Minister’s hour-long presentation indicated their appreciation as they warmed up for the question and answer session that followed.
