hen the victorious candidate at the October 2011 presidential elections took the floor during the swearing in ceremony at the National Assembly on Thursday, November 3, 2011 he made no bones of his intention to transform the economy radically into a buoyant machine that would at very short notice, transform the lives of many Cameroonians. At the time President-elect Paul Biya made these promises, there were some flickers of hope as the economy was showing some useful signs of revival after a long hibernation period, not necessarily of our making. A rather enthused President, taking office, said: ”I now want to address what will undoubtedly be one of the main challenges of the seven-year term, namely accelerating the revival of growth.” Cameroonians took the pledge word for word and expected windfalls virtually in the next few months; but little did they remember that the old problems were still in the drawing boards. Just three years into the term, the issues were so difficult to overcome that the President himself had to introduce an unplanned three-year emergency plan to help cover some of the electoral promises he had made, but which could hardly be made because of unforeseen contingencies along the line. A plan as ambitious as that of the President at the time he took office could be brought down by even the smallest and unnoticed factors. And that is probably what happened on the way of probably executing the programmed as laid out in November 2011. First, energy has not come in the way the President expected. And yet, energy is a crucial factor in getting such an ambitious investment programme take off. It was not enough to recount, as the President did in 2011, some of the successes the economy had made to believe that there was going to be a spectacular turnaround. For instance, he counted rather too much on the advantages we were going to get from the debt relief we had just benefited from the Bretton Woods institutions. Hear him on that occasion: “Although the recent economic and financial crisis did not call into question the fundamentals of our economy, it did slow our momentum at the time when we were getting ready to launch our major agricultural, mining, energy and infrastructure projects… I am pleased to be able to say now that, notwithstanding a global context still marked by sluggishness and unusual upheavals, most of these projects will soon see the light of day and will radically transform our country’s economy.” Numerous signs are green in economic performance least of not which is the growth rate in the five percent threshold. Furthermore, some of the face-lifting projects are already into their final phases, meaning that the much-expected turnaround in the economy could come about sooner, rather later. But the most important of all elements in the drive to get to emergence status is in the necessity for all actors to jump on board and be counted as those seeking for Cameroon’s economic progress. Economic progress can no longer be the exclusive responsibility of bureaucrats of the planning ministry. It is a broader enterprise involving virtually all ministries and even civil society actors. For example, an investor can be turned away simply because of the unpleasant attitude of an immigration official at the airport or by the impoliteness of a hotel attendant or even by the over-zealousness of a policeman. The ministry responsible for this noble Presidential ambition ought to do more in ensuring that the full benefits of a favourable environment for economic growth is maintained. For instance, those responsible for water must fight hard to ensure that water is available, those responsible for providing electricity should have the same concern while those issuing administrative documents must be mobilized in a similar manner. It is this synergy of effort that can provide results because any break in the chain can cause devastating effects.