The Africa Report — July-August 2017

C

ameroon’sgeographyanditsrole

intheCommunauté Economique

et Monétaire de l’Afrique Centrale

(CEMAC) are benefiting the country’s

cementsector.Ithasbeenattractingnew

commitmentswhichcouldhelpturnthe

country into a sizeable exporter within

the next two years. This could also be

a boon for Cameroonian consumers,

although the end of LafargeHolcim-

owned Cimencam’s monopoly a few

yearsagohasnotledtoasignificant

dropinretailprices.

Cementfirmshavebeentakingadvan-

tageofa2013lawonprivateinvestment

that includes tax and other exemptions

during the set-up and operational pe-

riods. After severe cement shortages

were recorded in 2008, the government

has been looking to strengthen local

production and diversify investors in

the sector. In the past three years, three

new cement plants have opened in

Cameroon. Moroccan-ownedCiments

d’Afrique(Cimaf) got started in early

2014, while Nigeria’s Dangote Cement

began operations in April 2015 and

Turkish-Cameroonian joint venture

Medcem followed in June 2015.

All of Cameroon’s four main produc-

ers have plans to expand their produc-

tion in the coming years. Cimencam,

which has operated in the country since

1963, began construction of a plant with

the capacity to produce 500,000tn per

annumatNomayos,outsideofYaoundé,

in March of this year. Cimaf Cameroun,

owned by Moroccan construction com-

pany Addoha, is set to triple its produc-

tion capacity of 500,0000tn per year by

2018. Market leader Dangote Cement
      Cameroon is working on a new plant in
      Yaoundé (see interview). And finally,
      Turkish-backed Medcem is working
      on increasing the capacity of its plant
      from600,000tnto1mtonnes.Newcomer
      Mira Cement is also talking up its plans

to build a 1m-tonne plant in Douala,

where most of the other plants operate.

If all of the projects come to fruition,

Camerooncouldbeproducing9mtonnes

perannuminafewyears’timeandexport-

ingtoneighbouringcountriessuchasChad

and the Central African Republic. That

would be a big boost for regional trade,

as the CEMAC lags behind other African

regionalorganisations,withintra-regional

trade accounting for less than 2% of total

trade. Businesses have long complained

that weak infrastructure and a lack of

intergovernmental cooperation have

held back trade between Central African

countries.Cementpricesaremuchhigher

in landlocked Central African countries

like Chad, where a 50kg sack of cement

soldfor11,000CFAfrancs($18.8)in2016.

AsCameroonhasnocommerciallime-

stoneminestoprovideanimportantraw

material – clinker – cement producers

havetoimportit.Andasthegovernment

is struggling to raise revenue amidst

lower commodity prices and the fight

against the Boko Haram Islamist mili-

tants, Yaoundé has decided to double

dutiesonclinkerimportsto10%thisyear.

HIGHER TAXES, HIGHER PRICES

Companies say that moves like these

will keep prices higher for consumers.

CimafchiefexecutiveAbdeladimArnous

told local media in June: “Investors in

Cameroonarebetweenarockandahard

place. You have to pay more taxes, you

have to pay more customs duties, you

have to drop prices. It is an extremely

complexequation.”Pricestendtofluctu-

ate, and a 50kg sack of Cimencap CPJ35

cement was selling for 4,200 CFA francs

($7.17) in Douala in June, representing

a 200 CFA franc rise on recent prices.

For about a decade, the government

has been looking for a developer for the

limestonedepositatMintom,insouthern

Cameroon. It has estimated reserves

of 540m cubic metres, and the mines

ministrysaysthatthecompanyCageme

CEMENT

Ready, get set,

go regional

Cement producers are in intense

competition as Cameroon becomes

a growing base for companies looking

to access landlocked neighbours

Dangote

Cement went

from zero

to 50%

market share

in Cameroon

in just one

year, with its

Douala plant

Annual production capacity of Cameroon’s

main cement producers(million tonnes)

Cimencam

Dangote

Medcem

Cimaf

1.6

1.5

0.6

0.5

SOURCE: CAMEROON MINES MINISTRY

56 COUNTRY FOCUS| CAMEROON