By Doh James Sonkey
The 16th session of the Steering and Monitoring Committee of the French Debt Relief and Development Contract, C2D took place last May 21, 2024 in Yaounde under the co-chairmanship of Finance Minister, Louis Paul Motaze, Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, Alamine Ousmane Mey and French Ambassador to Cameroon, H.E Thierry Marchand.
In his opening speech, Minister Louis Paul Motaze expressed government’s gratitude towards France for accompanying Cameroon in its ambitious development plan to guarantee the wellbeing of the population.
The Finance boss said the 16th session enabled them the opportunity to visit advances recorded as of the last 15th session of the Steering and Monitoring Committee of C2D projects that held last May 4, 2023.
Minister Motaze revealed that Cameroon from January 2023 to March 2024 honoured its commitments by FCFA 74.2 billion and said since 2006, Cameroon had signed a total of 50 conventions with France. He begged on France to continue with this good adventure which they begun some 18 years ago.
The Finance Minister congratulated all the stakeholders in the implementation of C2D projects in Cameroon for the positive results attained so far.
He called on all stakeholders to work with commitment and abnegation so that the realisations of this exemplary cooperation between Cameroon and France should impact the daily lives of the population of Cameroon.
Attending this session for the second time since he came to Cameroon, Ambassador Thierry Marchand in his speech reassured that France is accompanying Cameroon in the Decentralisation process.
The French Ambassador said “France is proud of the close to 18 years of realisation of C2D in Cameroon where lives have been transformed, cities given a new facelift etc.”
Presenting the state of the implementation of recommendations of the 15th sessions, the Coordinator of the Technical Secretariat of STADE-C2D, Berthe Jeannine Tsafack disclosed that “FCFA 777 billion has already been invested in Cameroon in 3rd generation programmes out of the awaited FCFA 967 billion.”
France and the Civil Society expressed their satisfaction for the implementation of C2D programmes in Cameroon.
The session was also attended by Ministers Celestine Ketcha Courtes of Housing and Urban Development, Ibrahim Talba Malla of Public Contracts Ministry, George Elanga Obam of Decentralisation and Local Development, Manaouda Malachie of Public Health, Gabriel Mbairobe of Agriculture and Rural Development, Achille Bassilekin III of Small and Medium Size Entreprises, Social Economy and the Handicrafts etc.