At ICDT Invest Days forum in Yaounde: IPA boss says Cameroon seeking new foreign investment opportunities.

He was speaking at the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the economic and investment forum dubbed: ‘ICDT Invest Days,’ organised at the Yaounde Conference Centre, on September 24 and 25.

The gathering was organised by the IPA, in partnership with the Islamic Centre for Development of Trade, ICDT. It was on the theme: “Investing in the new Cameroon, a land of attractiveness”.

It brought together some fifty economic operators from member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, OIC, and over 500 participants, among them promoters of large, small and medium-sized enterprises as well as economic policymakers. 

The opening ceremony was presided over by the Secretary General of the Ministry of External Relations, MINREX, Chinmoun Oumarou.

Speaking at the event, the MINREX scribe highlighted that the meeting, which came just a few days after the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, is proof that the Head of State, Paul Biya, is committed to give an economic orientation to Cameroon’s mandate at the head of the body. 

He further praised the OIC’s significant contribution to Cameroon’s socio-economic development over the past 50 years.

Islamic States are potential investors

Speaking to the press after the opening ceremony, Boma Donatus highlighted the importance of driving investment through the Islamic cooperation.

“All the Arab Gulf countries are Islamic States…that is where money is now in the world. We bring the Islamic Cooperation to Cameroon to open up our economy to new investors interested in our import substitution schemes that we have been selling all of these years through our National Development Strategy, NDS30,” Boma underscored.

He added that: “We are pleased that we brought them here and we look forward to exchanges and to fruitful win-win relations. Cameroon has not really benefited from its presence within this organisation. We need to reverse this trend”.

For the Director General of ICDT, Latifa Elbouabdellaoul, the meeting is an opportunity for Cameroon to showcase the great investment potential that it offers, including its terms of trade. 

“We chose Cameroon because we realised that investors are keen to invest here. We’re here to help investors seize investment opportunities,” she explained.

According to the organisers, the forum has as main aim to strengthen and revitalise economic relations between the Member States of the OIC.

Cameroon, in a bid to increase its Foreign Direct Investments, is offering opportunities to investors interested in key sectors such as agriculture, renewable energy, livestock farming, fishing, crafts, aviation, transport, ICTs and tourism.

Investors express interest

A number of participants from member states of the OIC travelled to Yaounde for the meeting with the goal to benefiting from the exchanges, forge partnerships with local economic operators and promote economic cooperation between the participating countries.

A Moroccan investor, Aharrouch Abdeslam, confided that Cameroon and Morocco are trying to create an economic synergy that will help develop both countries.

For Moroccan businesswoman, Soukayna Labhar, Cameroon is an uncharted territory for investment.

“I think there are a lot of opportunities that just need to be exploited. We intend to forge serious partnerships to invest here,” she stated. 

For his part, Cameroonian entrepreneur, Richard Minyem, welcomed the initiative, which he says will help diversify local investment. According to Minyem, there is a lot to be done in Cameroon as far investing is concerned. 

“We are here to try and seize opportunities with foreign investors, because you can’t build alone. You always need foreigners to build a great nation, and Cameroon is a great nation,” he stressed. 

He added that: “The country is a rich and a fertile ground for investments. So, we are here to make contributions and proposals that can help bring investments, as well as look forward for win-win opportunities”.

The forum was accentuated with Business-to-Business meetings, panel discussions as well as exhibitions. Donatus Boma stressed that the ICDT Invest Days brought together economic partners to share experiences and promote mutual development. He pointed out that the two-day forum provided an avenue for realising shared ambitions. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post issue N0:3242 of Friday September 27, 2024