The World Bank Group has approved two financial operations for Cameroon, totaling $400 million, aimed at improving public finance management and promoting sustainable growth. These initiatives are designed to enhance the country's economic resilience and transparency in handling public finances.
The first operation is the Fiscal Sustainability, Inclusive and Sustainable Growth Development Policy Financing (DPF). This initiative will provide budget support to help Cameroon foster inclusive growth and increase its resilience to climate change. Cheick Fantamady Kante, World Bank Division Director for Cameroon, stated: "Cameroon's economy faces increasing fiscal and external financing pressures. The World Bank’s budget support operation helps the Government of Cameroon implement bold reforms to strengthen fiscal sustainability and social service delivery while laying the foundations for sustainable infrastructure development." He emphasized that this operation is expected to significantly benefit Cameroon's economic and social development.
This DPF is part of a three-operation series planned from 2022 to 2026. It supports efforts in decentralization, public financial management improvement, inclusiveness promotion, and sustainable infrastructure development—key components for achieving upper middle-income status by 2035.
Samba Ba, Task Team Leader of the operation, highlighted: "The program will increase pro-poor resource allocation, spending efficiency, and resource mobilization by improving Treasury management, the performance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), fiscal decentralization, and promoting electronic payments." Ba also noted that these reforms would assist poor households through improved teacher distribution, adolescent girls’ education access to social safety nets and IDs while enhancing electricity sector financial health and water infrastructure in agriculture.
The second initiative is Improving Performance Accountability and Transparency (“IMPACT”), a Program for Results (PforR) focused on boosting domestic resources mobilization with an emphasis on equity. This effort aims at better utilizing public resources to improve basic services such as healthcare and water supply. It aligns with policies backed by the DPF intended to enhance tax policy implementation improve treasury management increase municipal fiscal resources enhance SOE transparency oversight.
Henri Fortin Task Team Leader for IMPACT explained: “Besides equipping the state with more resources so it can fulfill its key roles and improving accountability in the use of these resources IMPACT will support Cameroon’s efforts to manage its public finances in a more climate- and gender-responsive way.”