Tuesday March 5, 2024 in Brazzaville (Republic of Congo), Mr. Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE, Congolese Minister of Economy and Finance, President of the Steering Committee of the Economic and Financial Reforms Program of the Economic and Monetary Community of Africa Centrale (PREF-CEMAC), indicated five points of reflection to the participants of the 8th meeting of the Technical Committee for monitoring the mobilization of financing and the implementation of the 13 priority integrative projects (PIP) of the 2nd cycle. These Projects were presented at the Paris Round Table on November 28 and 29, 2023.
The five points indicated by the Congolese Minister of Economy and Finance at the opening of the work (which will continue for 4 days until Friday March 8, 2024) relate to the point relating to the financing announced by the partners during the Paris Round Table from Tuesday November 28 to Wednesday November 29, 2023; defining the modalities for implementing second cycle projects; the designation of project leaders at the level of institutions and development banks; the preparation of reminder letters for the various partners and the transmission of additional information, if necessary; and reviewing the implementation status of the two remaining first cycle projects.
The total amount of funding mobilized during this Round Table amounts to 9.2 billion euros, or 104.2% of the overall cost of the 13 second cycle projects, estimated at 8.8 billion euros. This creates a surplus of 374.08 million euros.
The thirteen projects divided into four axes
Axis 1: Development of physical infrastructure, in support of the development and competitiveness of the economies of the CEMAC sub-region. This axis includes 8 projects, namely: the Pointe-Noire-Brazzaville-Ouesso-Bangui-N’Djamena corridor development project, phase 2 (Congo-RCA-Chad); the Kélo-Pala-Léré-Cameroon border road development and asphalting project (Chad-Cameroon); the Kougouleu-Medouneu-Akerenam road development and asphalting project, Kougouleu-Medouneu section, over a length of 168 km (Gabon-Equatorial Guinea); the Garoua-Boulaï-Baboua road development and asphalting project, on corridor 2 (Cameroon-CAR); the construction project for the extension of the railway between Ngaoundéré and N’Djaména (Cameroon-Chad); the Ndendé-Dolisie road construction project, in the Libreville-Brazzaville corridor (Gabon-Congo); the Project for the construction of road access roads to the road-rail bridge (Congo-DRC); and the Project to carry out river and port developments on the Congo River and its tributaries (Congo-RCA).
Axis 2: Strengthening the production of stable, cheap and accessible energy for the populations of CEMAC. This axis concerns 2 projects: the Electricity Connection Project between Grand Poubara and Imboulou over 580 km (Gabon-Congo) and the Electricity Interconnection Project between Bertoua and Boali (Cameroon-RCA).
Axis 3: Promotion of the Single Market, to strengthen commercial integration. This axis has two projects. The first is that of the construction of a dry port in Ebebiyin, in the Three Borders Zone (Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Gabon). The second is the Ngueli dry port construction project (Chad-Cameroon).
Axis 4: Promotion of economic diversification, conducive to the densification of the productive base, environmental protection, inclusive growth and development. This last axis includes only one project: that of supporting the development of the timber sector, in the Congo Basin (Cameroon-Congo-Gabon-RCA-Equatorial Guinea).
Note that the two remaining projects from the first cycle of CEMAC integrative projects, adopted at the Paris Round Table in November 2020, are being restructured in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode, with a view to their construction-operation in BOT (Build-operate-transfer) mode at the latest by the end of this year 2024. This concerns the Cholet hydroelectric development project and associated power lines (Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, CAR) and the Project construction of the dry port of Beloko.
The advantages of the 13 projects, according to the Congolese Minister of Economy and Finance
“CEMAC aims to gradually increase intra-community trade to reach the threshold of 40% in 2030. The deepening of integration and the intensification of trade thus expected will largely depend on the capacity of this sub-region to provide suitable and resilient infrastructure. The usefulness of an efficient regional infrastructure network in promoting competitive and efficient regional markets, to drive the emergence of our area, no longer needs to be demonstrated. The implementation of the thirteen projects of the second cycle of integrating projects should thus enable the sub-region to strengthen its resilience in the face of future shocks, but also to develop intra-community exchanges, in particular to guarantee food security and benefit more from of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” declared Minister Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE, President of the PREF-CEMAC Steering Committee.
The opening of the work of the 8th meeting of the PREF-CEMAC Technical Monitoring Committee took place in the presence of Mrs. Ingrid Olga Ghislaine Ebouka-Babackas, Congolese Minister of Planning, Statistics and Regional Integration, and the Secretary permanent representative of PREF-CEMAC, Professor Michel-Cyr Djiena Wembou.
As a reminder, the Technical Monitoring Committee is placed under the supervision of the President of the PREF-CEMAC Steering Committee. It is made up of representatives of the CEMAC member states, the African Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank (WB), as well as experts from the Bank of Central African States (BEAC), the Development Bank of Central African States (BDEAC), CEMAC and PREF-CEMAC. Its main mandate is to monitor the mobilization of funding announced by donors and private investors, and to coordinate the implementation of these integrative projects.
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