BY NDUMBE BELL JOSEPH GASTON IN DOUALA
Cameroon is actively involved in world trade. Reports gathered from an international trade observatory Export Enterprise SA 2023 indicates as we all know, that Cameroon is a member of the commonwealth, CEMAC, the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC), the European Union (EU) and have also signed an agreement for membership with the new African Common Market (also referred to as ZLECAF).
According to the World Bank, global trade figures result to about 33% to the GDP.
Even though the present report includes a five-year period beginning from 2017 to 2021, figures to be mentioned in this summary will feature the latest in 2020-2021, according to an April 2023 findings or report.
Cameroon’s exports are not that transformed or diversified yet but mostly made of primary products. Among the very top is of the nation’s exports are crude oil and gaz, minerals such as coal, aluminium, wood or timber, cocoa, cotton and rubber. Global exports of goods rose from U.S.D 3.385 million in 2020 to U.S dollars 4.100 million in 2021, whiles import rose from U.S. dollar 5.364 million to U.S. dollar 6.100 million in the same period above. Importation of services were reported by the World Trade Organisation in 2020 as USD 2.241 million and services exported in the same year were U.S.D 1.552 million.There were no importation nor exportation of services in 2021 according the World Trade Organisation report.
On, the other side, Cameroon’s imports are especially combustibles, minerals, petrol (refined), food items such as rice, wheat, fish and a host of others. Other important items are medicines, manufactured goods such as vehicles, machines, electric and electronic equipment.
The key export partners to Cameroon are China, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain and India. Imports come mostly from China, France, Nigeria, Netherlands (Holland), Thailand, U.S.A. and Togo. East Asian countries such as India, China, Japan and Thailand are in competition with the European Union since 2016 that Cameroon signed a trade facilitation agreement with the E.U.
This active involvement in world trade lacks the resultant benefits that we need and more efforts are expected in this direction.For example, the global balance of trade with other countries ends in deficit. In 2020 the World Trade Organisation reportedly estimated that our country registered a trade deficit of nearly US Dollar 2 million when we imported USD 5.4 million and exported US Dollar 3.4 million.