The member countries of the Central Africa Economic and Monetary Community CEMAC will organize on November 16 and 17, in Brussels, Belgium, a round table under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Congo. The objective of this meeting will be to mobilize nearly 2,563.4 billion CFA francs to finance integrative projects in the sub-region.
“The heads of state have asked the Cémac Economic and Financial Reform Program (Pref-Cémac) to make the necessary arrangements for the mobilization of technical and financial partners. I can assure you that contrary to what one could reproach in the preparation of the round tables, this time, the participants’ notebook is ready, a concept note has been established on each of these projects with a technical study to justify the degree of maturity of the projects ”, the Permanent Secretary of Pref-CEMAC, Michel-Cyr Djiena Wembou aasured during a press conference devoted to the presentation of the 2019 annual report of the reform program.
In light of the maturity conditions, twelve projects meeting international criteria were selected, said the permanent secretary. This involves, among other things, the establishment within the Cémac space of basic infrastructure: transport, electricity and telecommunications, without which no economic take-off is possible. These integrative projects also take into account the critical levers of competitiveness of modern economies, which is the development of human capital.
It should be noted that the choice to focus on basic infrastructure is explained by the fact that the weakness of these is the main constraint to high growth within the Cémac area and to the effective implementation of the integration policy. Cémac is the economic community with the least infrastructure and the least integrated on the continent, hence the need to develop infrastructure to release its immense potential and promote its integration.
Central Africa has experienced generally satisfactory economic performance over the past fifteen years. But growth remains fragile and not very inclusive, because it is very dependent on oil production and other raw materials. Governance issues, as well as water and energy supply difficulties as well as weak internal communications do not yet allow the emergence of a competitive private sector essential to the installation of sustainable and inclusive growth.
Due to the administrative slowness recorded in the facilitation of transport and trade, the transport system does not play its role of engine of the economic development of States and regional integration. Global intra-regional trade remains, for these same reasons, relatively low (around 3%).
To meet the challenges of integration and take advantage of the immense potential, the Heads of State adopted the “2025” vision, the objective of which is “to make Cémac an emerging integrated economic space where security, solidarity and good governance, at the service of human development. “
