At opening of Cameroon-UAE Investment Forum in Y’de: PM's envoy sells Cameroon’s attractiveness, potential to investors.

The assurances were given by the Special Adviser to the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Prof Cheka Cosmas Ngasah. He was speaking in Yaounde yesterday while opening the Cameroon-UAE Investment Forum on behalf of the Prime Minister, Head of Government.

Prof Cheka assured the visiting investors of Cameroon’s enormous economic potentials and investment opportunities through its rich natural resources, added to its strategic location on the continent as a destination for business in all domains. 

“If for any reason on coming, you doubted where you were going, please know that you are in Cameroon and this is the place to be. Get the best out of it through the many industries that have come and when you go back, tell them that we are green agriculturally or naturally in terms of vegetation and green in terms of investment opportunities,” Prof Cheka assured the UAE investors. 

He added that: “Cameroon is the gateway to do business in Central Africa and the rest of Africa. We are at the junction. Our intention is to take advantage of these natural gifts to make sure that other countries that are less endowed also benefit…”.

He told the investors that Cameroon has a resilient economy, a dynamic business environment and skilled labour added to its bilingual nature, which eases communication in business.

“In every domain, you will find skilled labour in Cameroon, which corresponds with your needs. Cameroon is in the right place. Bring your friends and let us help our regions grow together,” he told the over 20 investors. 

Prof Cheka said Cameroon is part of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area and will give unlimited access to markets, which otherwise would have been difficult for UAE investors in the rest of the continent. 

“The country offers tremendous opportunities for investors from the UAE and beyond,” he stated, noting that the visitors would be amazed by what they see during their five-day stay in the country.

The PM’s representative also assured the visitors of the country’s business-friendly legal frameworks, noting that the priority of government is to drive development forward on a win-win basis, as clearly defined by the National Development Strategy, SND30.

“…it is a big thing and we hope that we will take full advantage of their presence here to canalise their efforts and drive investments towards areas that support our development strategy in a manner that is a catalyst to other small businesses,” Prof Cheka said. 

He called on the UAE investors to use the SND30 document and widen perspectives for collaboration between Cameroon and UAE.

The Prime Minister’s representative also pledged government’s readiness to support all initiatives that would come out of the forum to fast-track economic cooperation and the country’s development.

Enter IPA General Manager 

In her opening address at the forum, the General Manager of the Investment Promotion Agency, IPA, Marthe Angeline Minja, said the forum is fruits of promotional activities her institution organised in Dubai, in the UAE, last year, to market Cameroon as an investment destination. 

The activities, she said, unfolded simultaneously with promotion activities at the Qatar World Cup, which targeted the presence of government, businesses, high-level individuals, investors and experts, to network and showcase the Cameroon market and to attract sustainable Foreign Direct Investment to the country.

The results of the institution’s charm offensive, Minja disclosed, led to the signing of eight Memoranda of Understanding, MoUs, between the IPA and certain Emirati institutions and between Cameroonian and Emirati investors.

She said the signing of these MoUs set the scene for the strengthening of economic cooperation between Cameroon and UAE, with the aim of attracting Foreign Direct Investment to Cameroon.

She said it is the outcome of the IPA activities that a good number of Emirati businessmen expressed the desire to visit Cameroon to explore investment opportunities and learn in detail about the legal framework governing business in general. Above all, they want to get a feel of the relevant information provided by API and the entire Cameroonian delegation to Emirati investors last year. 

“It is with a view to making the most of this promotional activity that API has decided to organise this forum, which brings us together here today,” Minja stated. 

She said through the forum, IPA intends to contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the National Development Strategy, SND30, as advocated by the Head of State, Paul Biya, by strengthening the role of the private sector in financing development.

Cameroon as business destination 

The boss of IPA said the forum aims to specifically enable Emirati investors to gain first-hand experience of Cameroon's various assets, contribute to strengthening exchanges between Cameroonian public/private project promoters and Emirati investors. It also has as objective to deepen the exchanges already underway between Cameroonian and Emirati economic operators and project promoters as well as boasts the country’s assets that underpin its attractiveness. 

Minja told the investors that Cameroon “stands out for its strategic position, sharing borders with all the other CEMAC countries”. 

This, she said, adds to its “Atlantic coastline, rail network, three international airports, autonomous port, deep-water port and 50,000 km of roads”, which all contribute to its integration into regional and world trade.

Cameroon’s natural resources, Minja said, are “abundant and not yet sufficiently exploited”, together with its rich soils, climate and natural environments, which are ideal for agriculture. 

Photo: PM’s representative, IPA & UAE Trade Center officials singing anthems of both nations to kick start event 

She also mentioned the country’s hydroelectric potential and significant natural gas reserves, construction of a wide range of large-scale energy infrastructure to ensure the availability of viable, sufficient and permanent energy. Minja also stated the existence of numerous SMEs/SMIs, abundant young and qualified workforce, with one of the highest school enrolment rates in sub-Saharan Africa as a plus for the country as an investment destination. 

The IPA General Manager, also cited Cameroon's political stability, which makes it an investment safe bet and the legal framework that favours private investment and allows companies to benefit from the support of the Investment Promotion Agency for a period of fifteen years. 

She told the investors that IPA grants both domestic and foreign investors customs, tax, financial and administrative incentives, among other services, which reduce investment costs by around 40%.

The incentive framework, she said, will enable the development of the country’s priority sectors, notably in the agro-industry, infrastructure, energy, social housing and urban development, extractive industries, new technologies, among others. 

Minja disclosed that since 2014, IPA has signed 328 agreements with private companies for an investment amount of nearly 6,000 billion FCFA and 125,000 projected jobs. She said all the measures have been put in place on the request of the Head of State, to encourage the attraction of productive investment and accelerate growth.

Minja expressed the wish for the forum to serve as a lever to boost important and strategic partnership through the business meetings that will be held within the five days to increase the flow of Emirati Foreign Direct Investments to Cameroon.

Deputy IPA boss zooms on deals 

The Deputy General Manager of IPA, Boma Donatus, told reporters that the forum is the beginning of “real concrete business,” after MoUs signed during the promotional activities last year.

“We signed MoUs and they are going to be materialised in the form of investments, which are already sealed,” Boma stated. 

He said API is already sure of at least four of the investment deals. He cited the solar energy project of 50 kilowatts to 100 kilowatts about to be sealed, a logistics agreement between Cameroon Airline Corporation and an aviation company, which will perfect Cameroonian products to be exported to Dubai. 

He also mentioned the ophthalmological hospital, which UAE investors have been convinced to open for charity to Cameroonians as well as others in cement industry and steel. 

“From the sheer number of more than 32-40 investors who are here, this is a record. Tomorrow, we can say we brought in the Foreign Direct Investments necessary to catalyse the development of our country within the 2030 National Development Strategy,” Boma said. 

UAE Trade Centre CEO hails Cameroon’s potentials 

In his remarks at the start of the forum, the Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of Dubai Consultancy and UAE Trade Centre, Walid Hareb Alfalahi, said the activities in the UAE during the World Cup was an “eye-opener” to the rich potentials of Cameroon.

He said with the potentials presented to them by IPA, they then sought the consent of UAE government to “attract companies and to bring them here [Cameroon]”. 

“Seeing, they say is believing,” he happily stated of the country’s potentials, adding that the increased number of Cameroonians in the UAE was also another push for them to solidify business ties and exploit new areas of investment. 

“This country can play a role for the UAE as a stepping stone to other Regions. We are looking at some business opportunities from aviation, solar and agriculture. We are looking at these opportunities as potential investors from us,” Walid said. 

The CEO of UAE Trade Centre used the opportunity to assure Cameroonian businessmen of the willingness of their government to facilitate challenges and make it much easier for them to penetrate the market. 

“Our role as the UAE Trade Centre is to look for new markets and new opportunities,” he assured.

Taking the cue, the Deputy CEO of Dubai Exports and Tourism, Mohamed Ali Al Kamali, assured Cameroonian businessmen of their support for the forum and the resolve to help interested UAE companies to come and understand the business opportunities in Cameroon. 

Mohamed Ali sounded optimistic that the forum would “bring more economic development, prosperity to the UAE and Cameroon”.

“We have to use this platform today presented by IPA and UAE Trade Centre, to understand the opportunities here, which will allow us to do business,” he said. 

About Cameroon-UAE Investment Forum  

The Cameroon-UAE Investment Forum is a five-day investment mission to Cameroon by UAE investors for a high level networking and in-depth discussions on the current projects, market access and showcase of different potential opportunities for investments in Cameroon.

The forum will provide a platform for various industries to come together and discuss the potentials of Cameroon as a market for their businesses.

Delegates to the forum have the opportunity to gain a comprehensive understanding of the Cameroonian market, including information on regulatory frameworks, market trends, legal advisory services and investment incentives.

The forum, which is a return visit of the IPA to UAE in 2022, to market Cameroon as an investment destination, is a further step to concretise existing business relations between both nations. 

It goes further to demonstrate that Cameroon remains a land of opportunities. The visiting UAE investors will, through the forum, get abreast with the relevant information provided by IPA last year.

It will feature ministerial roundtables to enable both parties to review the Abu Dhabi exchanges and define a roadmap for economic collaboration between the two countries.

It will also feature organisation of B2B and B2G business meetings sessions between the two delegations, networking sessions and visits to sites related to target projects, among others.