Célestin Tawamba sounds alarm on Cameroon’s decelerating economy
The president of the Groupement des Entreprises du Cameroun (GECAM) painted a stark picture of the country’s economic health on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, highlighting a slowdown that jeopardises the 2035 emergence goal.
According to the GECAM leader, Cameroon’s growth slipped to 3.1% in 2025, down from 3.5% the previous year. This pace, he argued, falls well short of what is needed for the nation to achieve its long-term development ambitions. For context, sub-Saharan Africa is projected to expand by an average of 4.5%, while the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) is expected to hit 6.4%. Within the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), where Cameroon remains the largest economy, average growth is forecast at just 2.6%.
Oil sector collapse deepens
A key culprit behind the weak performance is the struggling oil industry. The hydrocarbons segment contracted by 6.9% in 2025, following a steep 9.7% decline in 2024. This back-to-back drop confirms that petroleum is no longer the primary driver of Cameroon’s economic engine, the GECAM noted.
Agriculture and agro-industry under pressure
Other sectors offer little comfort. Growth in the primary sector halved from 3.6% to 1.7% year-on-year. Industrial and export-oriented agriculture swung from a robust 8.7% expansion in 2024 to a 3.2% contraction in 2025, attributed to adverse weather conditions and falling export volumes across several value chains.
Cotton is a vivid symbol of this decline. Production stood at only 286,000 tonnes, far below the 400,000-tonne target. Export volumes dropped by 24%, while the value of cotton exports plunged by 29.8%.
Cocoa and coffee: mixed signals
“Even the best-performing sectors reveal underlying vulnerabilities,” observed the GECAM chief. The cocoa season posted a record harvest of 309,518 tonnes, yet export volumes fell by 9%. However, higher global prices boosted export value by 18%. Coffee followed a similar pattern: production rose from 10,562 to 11,637 tonnes, but exported quantities slipped by 2%, while earnings increased by 3.9% thanks to better market conditions.
Growing food import dependence
Cameroon continues to rely more heavily on imported food. Maize imports climbed by 4.5%, underscoring persistent challenges in achieving national food security, according to the GECAM. The industrial sector is also struggling to serve as a transformation engine. Its growth inched up from 1.7% to 2%, while manufacturing slowed from 2.9% to 2.2%. The business group blames high energy costs, logistical bottlenecks, financing constraints, and weak overall competitiveness for the lacklustre industrial performance.
