Cameroon’s 292 billion fcfa african development bank funding hangs in the balance

A significant financial risk has emerged for Cameroon, following a joint portfolio review held in Yaoundé on July 14, 2026, between the Cameroonian government and the African Development Bank (AfDB). Seven crucial operations, previously approved by the pan-African institution’s authorities and valued at 373.419 million Units of Account — approximately 292 billion FCFA — are now eligible for cancellation. This precarious situation stems not from a lack of available resources, but rather from protracted internal administrative processes that have stalled project implementation.

It is important to clarify that these funds are not monies already disbursed that Yaoundé would be required to repay. Instead, these allocations represent loans and grants that received AfDB approval, but for which agreements were not signed within the stipulated deadlines, or where no payments were initiated despite legal formalization. Six of these cases fall into the first category, while a seventh pertains to the latter. The total value of financing with outstanding agreements amounts to 339.419 million UC, or nearly 265 billion FCFA.

the ngoura-yokadouma road: a 207 billion fcfa symbol of stagnation

One project significantly outweighs all others in its financial implications. The Program for Opening Up and Connectivity of Cross-Border Economic Basins, intended to fund the development of the Ngoura-Yokadouma road in the country’s East, alone accounts for 265.4 million UC, roughly 207 billion FCFA. This single operation concentrates over 71% of the total amount currently exposed to the risk of cancellation. Approved on February 18, 2026, the loan agreement for this vital infrastructure project remained unsigned at the time of the review.

Five additional dossiers find themselves in a similar administrative gridlock. The Project to Support the Pan-African University, Phase 2, allocated 3.64 million UC by the African Development Fund (ADF) and approved on December 19, 2024, is among the operations awaiting signature. Also pending are the study for the Minkouma hydroelectric development on the Sanaga River (2.994 million UC), the CUA-Y2 university city study project (2.320 million UC), and the PROSTABLT program for risk prevention through stabilization at Lake Chad (5.095 million UC).

Adding to this list is a strategically important regional initiative: the transport and trade facilitation project, which includes the construction of a bridge over the Ntem River, bordering Equatorial Guinea. Approved on November 29, 2023, this project combines an AfDB loan of 39.97 million UC with an ADF loan of 20 million UC.

parzik2: fifteen months without a single disbursement

The seventh project exemplifies a different, yet equally costly, operational challenge. The Project for the Development of Access Roads to the Kribi Industrial and Port Zone, Phase Two, known as PARZIK2, does have a signed agreement in place. However, more than fifteen months after this signature, not a single disbursement had been recorded from its 34 million UC allocation, equivalent to approximately 26.54 billion FCFA. This dossier, too, has thus entered the risk zone, despite Kribi being a central pillar of the nation’s industrial and port strategy.

an execution cycle twice as slow as the norm

The data presented during the review paints a concerning picture of project execution. The average timeframe between the approval of financing and the signing of an agreement stands at twelve months, significantly exceeding the AfDB’s standard of three months. Subsequently, an average of sixteen months is required for the agreement to come into force, compared to the expected five months. The first disbursement, on average, occurs twenty-one months after approval, while the target is twelve months. This means nearly two years elapse before any funds are effectively deployed on the ground.

Alamine Ousmane Mey, the Minister of Economy, Planning, and Regional Development, acknowledged the gravity of this assessment. He highlighted several contributing factors: insufficient project preparation, delays in public procurement processes, weaknesses within certain management units, and the tardy mobilization of counterpart funds that the State is required to provide alongside external resources. These systemic frictions not only inflate costs but also undermine Cameroon’s credibility with its financial partners, impacting African governance efforts.

Since its inaugural operation in Cameroon in November 1972, the AfDB has committed 130 loans and grants, totaling an estimated 3,345 billion FCFA. The 2023-2028 program anticipates eleven new operations, with an approval volume valued at 833.8 billion FCFA. However, transforming these commitments into tangible, effective projects remains the critical weak link in the financial cooperation between Yaoundé and the pan-African institution.