Four conventions signed Friday to the tune of FCFA 76 billion are expected to propel the already existing cordial ties to higher heights.
Bilateral relations between Cameroon and France, especially in the economic domain, are shooting for the skies judging from recent developments between the two countries. The visit of the President of the Republic of France, François Hollande to Cameroon on July 3, 2015 will certainly go down the annals of history of the two countries as one which bolstered long-standing relations between Cameroon and France. Coming some 14 years after the last French President visited Cameroon, President François Hollande had a package to grease the economic ties between France and Cameroon.
Four Agreements Signed
The visit paved the way for the signing of four accords between Cameroon and France. As Presidents Hollande and Biya looked on, Cameroon’s Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development; Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi for Cameroon and the Director of the French Development Cooperation, Anne Paugam, for France, penned four agreements. The Director of the French Development Agency in Cameroon, Hervé Cona says the four accords amount to about FCFA 76 billion.
The first of the accords, a loan agreement amounting to FCFA 42.6 billion is aimed at developing secondary towns of Cameroon, notably the regional capitals of Bafoussam for the West, Betoua for the East and Garoua for the North Regions. The second loan accord to the tune of FCFA 29.5 billion is for the construction of a new access road to second bridge on River Wouri in Douala, the extension of the SCDP roundabout in Douala and the creation of a new underground railway line in the port city of Douala. Meanwhile, the third convention is to support small and medium-sized enterprises especially those involved in agriculture to the tune of FCFA 3.3 billion in order to boost production in quality and quantity. The least of the agreements was not the fourth, this time around a subvention to the investment projects of the Diaspora amounting to FCFA 655 million.
Analysts hold that the sectors selected in the new-found Cameroon-France economic cooperation speak of a common vision of the two Statesmen to make tomorrow better than today. This is more so as they tie with the growth objectives of Cameroon with pride of place position to infrastructure development, self-reliance agricultural production, a facelift to the small and medium-size sector and substantial and sustainable contributions of the Diaspora.
Added to these conventions was the experience-sharing forum that grouped business people from the two countries on the sidelines of the François Hollande visit. Some 25 business executives from France took time off to listen to investment opportunities in Cameroon and the legal and administrative instruments in place to guarantee win-win investments. Pundits hold that an idea of that nature raises hopes of better things to come.
As Cameroon relishes the new thrust in her economic cooperation with France therefore, it is hoped that potential investors will take advantage of the rich and varied resources in place and the laws available to set up mutually-beneficial investments. These include especially the revolutionary April 18, 2013 law on private investment incentives in the Republic of Cameroon with fiscal, customs and administrative advantages coupled with some of the investment-yearning sectors in the country like mining, agriculture, forest management et al.
