The 10th edition of the Cacao & Coffee Festival closed in style on Saturday, April 12, 2025, at the Yaoundé City Hall esplanade. Chaired by the Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, the closing ceremony highlighted Cameroon’s challenges and ambitions for better promotion of cocoa and coffee, in the presence of leading national and international figures.
The presence of prominent figures such as the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Grégoire Owona, the Minister for the Advancement of Women and the Family, Marie-Thérèse Abena Ondoa, as well as the Executive Director of the International Cocoa Organization, Michel Arion, and Ambassador Aly Touré, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire in London, gave a special shine to this edition. This annual event, which has become a must-attend event, celebrates not only Cameroonian export products, but also an entire economic, cultural, and social ecosystem.
In a firm and visionary address, Minister Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana reaffirmed the need for fair compensation for producers. “Producers are not asking for alms, but for justice and dignity,” he emphasized, pointing to persistent imbalances in the value chain. Transparency, predictability, and market stabilization are the key words of his appeal to all national and international stakeholders.
The Minister also discussed his recent participation in the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the World Trade Organization, held in Geneva. In the run-up to the next WTO Ministerial Conference scheduled for Yaoundé in March 2026, he expressed Cameroon’s desire to implement a “New Deal” there, aiming for a profound reform of international trade. The objective is clear: to make trade a lever for development, particularly for countries in the Global South, which are too often marginalized.
Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana emphasized the need to return to basics: promoting local production through industrialization. This approach is part of the National Development Strategy 2020-2030 (SND30), which makes the local processing of agricultural products a priority to strengthen the country’s economic resilience.
The ceremony concluded with a tour of the exhibition stands, highlighting Cameroon’s wealth of expertise in cocoa and coffee processing. Innovative products, local entrepreneurial initiatives, and strong involvement of young people and women punctuated this final day, confirming that Cameroon is focusing more than ever on its strategic agricultural sectors.
