A joint portfolio review conducted in Yaoundé on July 14, 2026, between the Cameroonian government and the African Development Bank (AfDB) has revealed a substantial financial threat for Cameroon. Seven operations, previously approved by the pan-African institution’s governing bodies and totaling 373.419 million units of account (approximately 292 billion FCFA), are now at risk of cancellation. This situation stems not from a lack of available funds, but rather from protracted internal procedures that are hindering project implementation.
It is important to clarify that these are not funds already disbursed that Yaoundé would need to repay. Instead, these amounts represent loans and grants that the AfDB had validated, but for which agreements were not signed within stipulated deadlines, or where no payments were initiated despite legal formalization. Six of these cases fall into the first category, while one falls into the second. The total financing with pending agreements reaches 339.419 million units of account, equivalent to nearly 265 billion FCFA.
Ngoura-Yokadouma road: a 207 billion FCFA project at a standstill
One project significantly outweighs all others in terms of financial exposure. The program for opening up and connecting cross-border economic basins, which aims to fund the development of the Ngoura-Yokadouma road in the country’s East, alone accounts for 265.4 million units of account, roughly 207 billion FCFA. This single operation represents over 71% of the total amount facing cancellation risk. Approved on February 18, 2026, the loan agreement for this crucial infrastructure project was still awaiting signature at the time of the review.
Five other initiatives are caught in the same administrative deadlock. The second phase of the Pan-African University support project, allocated 3.64 million units of account by the African Development Fund (ADF) and approved on December 19, 2024, is among those awaiting agreement signatures. Additionally, the Minkouma hydroelectric development study on the Sanaga River (2.994 million units of account), the CUA-Y2 university city 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) are also affected.
This list further includes a strategic regional undertaking: the transport and trade facilitation project, which encompasses the construction of a bridge over the Ntem River at the border with 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 a single 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, does have a signed agreement in place. However, more than fifteen months after its signing, no disbursements had been recorded from its 34 million units of account envelope, equating to approximately 26.54 billion FCFA. This project, therefore, also shifts into the high-risk category, despite Kribi being a pivotal element of Cameroon’s industrial and port strategy.
Execution cycle twice as slow as the standard
The data presented during the review paints a concerning picture. The average time from funding approval to agreement signature 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 come into effect, compared to an expected five months. The first disbursement typically occurs twenty-one months post-approval, while the target is twelve months. This means nearly two years elapse before any funds are effectively deployed on the ground.
The Minister of Economy, Planning, and Regional Development, Alamine Ousmane Mey, acknowledged the gravity of this assessment. He highlighted insufficient project preparation, delays in public procurement processes, weaknesses within certain management units, and the late mobilization of counterpart funds that the state is required to provide alongside external resources. These persistent frictions escalate costs and diminish the country’s credibility among international donors.
Since its inaugural operation in Cameroon in November 1972, the AfDB has committed 130 loans and grants, accumulating to an estimated 3,345 billion FCFA. The 2023-2028 program outlines eleven operations with an estimated approval volume of 833.8 billion FCFA. Nevertheless, the challenge remains to convert these commitments into tangible projects. Currently, this conversion process continues to be the weakest link in the financial cooperation between Yaoundé and the pan-African institution.