A recent joint portfolio review, held in Yaoundé on July 14, 2026, between the Cameroonian government and the African Development Bank (AfDB), has brought to light a significant financial jeopardy for Cameroon. Seven distinct operations, previously approved by the pan-African institution and collectively valued at 373.419 million units of account—equivalent to approximately 292 billion FCFA—are now at risk of cancellation. The core of the problem lies not in the availability of resources, but rather in the protracted internal procedures that are stalling project implementation.

It is crucial to understand that these are not funds already disbursed that Yaoundé would be required to repay. Instead, these financial provisions encompass loans and grants that received AfDB approval, but for which agreements were either not signed within the designated timelines or no payments were initiated despite legal formalization. Six of these cases fall into the former category, with a seventh experiencing the latter issue. The total value of funding with pending agreements reaches 339.419 million units of account, or nearly 265 billion FCFA.

Ngoura-Yokadouma road: a 207 billion FCFA bottleneck

One particular project significantly overshadows the others in terms of its financial magnitude. The Cross-Border Economic Basins Opening-Up and Connectivity Program, which is slated to finance the development of the Ngoura-Yokadouma road in the country’s East, accounts for a staggering 265.4 million units of account, approximately 207 billion FCFA, on its own. This single operation represents over 71% of the total amount exposed to cancellation risk. Approved on February 18, 2026, the loan agreement for this vital infrastructure project was still awaiting signature at the time of the review.

Five other projects find themselves entangled in similar administrative impasses. The second phase of the Pan-African University Support Project, allocated 3.64 million units of account by the African Development Fund (ADF) and validated on December 19, 2024, is among those awaiting agreement signatures. Additionally, the list includes studies for the Minkouma hydroelectric development on the Sanaga River (2.994 million units of account), the CUA-Y2 university campus study project (2.320 million units of account), and the PROSTABLT program for risk prevention through stabilization at Lake Chad (5.095 million units of account).

A critical regional initiative is also on this list: 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 units of account with an ADF loan of 20 million units of account.

PARZIK2: fifteen months without disbursement

The seventh project illustrates a different, yet equally costly, issue. The second phase of the Kribi Industrial and Port Zone Access Roads Development Project, known as PARZIK2, actually has a signed agreement in place. However, more than fifteen months after this signature, not a single disbursement had been recorded from its 34 million units of account, equivalent to approximately 26.54 billion FCFA. This project, despite Kribi being a central pillar of the nation’s industrial and port strategy, has also entered the risk zone.

Execution cycle twice as slow as the norm

The data presented during the review paints a concerning picture. The average time between a financing approval and the signing of its agreement stands at twelve months, significantly longer than the AfDB’s standard of three months. Following this, it takes an average of sixteen months for the agreement to become effective, compared to an expected five months. The initial disbursement, on average, occurs twenty-one months post-approval, while the target is twelve months. Essentially, nearly two years elapse before any funds are actively deployed on the ground.

Alamine Ousmane Mey, the Minister of Economy, Planning, and Regional Development, acknowledged the critical nature of these findings. He highlighted several contributing factors, including insufficient project preparation, delays in public procurement processes, weaknesses within certain management units, and the belated mobilization of counterpart funds that the state must provide to supplement external resources. These persistent issues escalate costs and undermine the nation’s credibility with its financial partners.

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 estimated approval volume of 833.8 billion FCFA. Yet, the crucial challenge remains transforming these commitments into tangible, active construction sites. This conversion of financial pledges into on-the-ground projects currently stands as the weakest link in the financial cooperation between Yaoundé and the pan-African institution.