The outgoing Country Director of the French Development Agency met with Public Works Minister to evaluate AFD’s funded projects in Cameroon.

The construction of the second bridge over the River Wouri in Douala in the Littoral Region (800m), the development of the east entrance to the same town and the tarring of the Batchenga-Ntui-Yoko-Lena road linking the Centre and Adamawa Regions of the country are infrastructural projects carried out with partial funding from the French Development Agency, AFD. This portfolio was the object of discussions between the Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi and the outgoing AFD Country Director, Hervé Conan, at the end of his three-year stay in Cameroon.

The discussions were long, with parties telling the press at the end that it was satisfaction and frustration at the same time, parting company after years of rich and fulfilled collaboration. Leaving a place where you had many friends, developed a strong partnership, moved on with a lot of projects and had the opportunity to demonstrate commitment at the ground level are hard to bear.

“We were able to demonstrate that AFD was a real partner for Cameroon and was able to provide the different financial tools to support the growth of Cameroon,” stated Herve Conan. He was however hopeful that the incoming AFD Country Director, Christian Yoka from Ethiopia will be ready to provide more to develop AFD’s project portfolio in Cameroon.

The second phase of the bridge over the River Wouri is a FCFA 100.8 billion project with work executed at 65 per cent. Complementary work consisting of the development of the principal axis between Bonaberi and Deido, the improvement of the Bonaberi round about, amongst others, have received funds from the AFD to the tune of FCFA 45 million Euros. The rehabilitation of the east entrance to Douala with work executed at 98.34 per cent according to information from the Ministry of Public Works, is another giant infrastructure project with financial assistance from the AFD.

The Batchenga-Ntui-Yoko-Tibati-Ngaoundere road fall within the project portfolio of the AFD, 612 kms long, has partial funding and are intended to disenclave the agricultural zones in the Centre and Adamawa Regions as well as facilitate the movement of goods from the northern part of the country with neighbouring Chad and the Central African Republic.