Promoting intra-African trade: UBA reaffirms position as digital platform for financial operations.

The bank's unflinching support to ease foreign trade operations in Africa and even more so, the Central African Subregion, through digitalisation, was brought to the limelight during a seminar with sectorial stakeholders in cross-border transit of goods through the corridors between Cameroon, Chad and Central African Republic.

The seminar was organised by UBA, in partnership with the Economy Interest Grouping, known in its French acronym, GUCE. 

The single window for foreign Trade Transaction is an economic interest grouping created by the state in 1999, with specific objectives dedicated to the facilitation of trade and simplification of foreign procedures by means of digitalisation. 

Statistics show that more than one billion tons of goods were transported in CEMAC in 2022. 

Isidore Biyiha, Director General of GUCE, noted that the transactions had been done in accordance with the national and Subregional regulations on community transit systems like the interstate Goods Transport Convention, Ministerial Instruction #.170/MINFI/DGD of 19 March 2009, which established customs device for monitoring by GPS goods in circulation. 

Pursuing the objectives of the simplifying trade, the state, through GUCE, and actors in national logistics chain, had initiated several reforms such as removal of superfluous checkpoints, creation of commercial information, amongst others. 

However, officials of transporters’ union, shipping companies, customs brokers in Cameroon, CAR and Chad have raised worries owing to what they described as “irritating delays” in customs check and payment procedures and documentation. 

To this regard, workshop organisers brought them onboard in a session with experts in supply chain with topic on how to use digital tools and payment and economic benefits. On the wake of digitalisation, experts say, the core solution is to dematerialise payment.

The Director General of UBA Cameroon, Jude Anele, commenting on the timeliness of the seminar, said it was prompt. Anele used the opportunity to present UBA Cameroon as a valuable partner in digital payments. 

"I think this workshop is very timely since there has been an increase in the transit of goods between Cameroon, Chad and the Central African Republic. Some of these countries have raised some issues concerning tariffs. So, this is the best time to bring all stakeholders together to make sure that most of these issues are trashed out with ways to make the movement of these goods very seamless and easy," he said. 

UBA's role, he said, was about dematerialisation of payment platforms. Being a leader in digital banking, the platform will give actors in the field, especially traders and businessmen options of payment.

"It shouldn't be one option,” he added. Anele said business operators in cross-border transit should be able to pay across multiple platforms. He added that it will make it easier for them to understand that digital scheme of payment is one of the key areas when it comes to intra-border movement of goods.

The brainstorming session brought together all stakeholders. They were in one accord to resolve issues which government’s reforms had initiated.

Panelists made transporters to understand formalities for loading and unloading goods in transit countries in the Subregion, using the port of Kribi and Douala, Cameroon customs digital tools, offers of container terminals, digital formalities with rail and roads combined, amongst other regulations.