Dibussi Tande: Scribbles from the Den

Cameroon Drops Nine Places on the 2006-2007 Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) Rankings

Cameroon has dropped from the 99th to the 108th position on the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) rankings for 2006-2007 released this week by the World Economic Forum (WEF). 

According to the WEF, the index “contains a detailed country/economy profile for each of the 125 economies featured in the study, providing a comprehensive summary of the overall position in the Index rankings as well as a guide to what are considered to be the most prominent competitive advantages and competitive disadvantages of each.”

2006 Economic Freedom of the World Report: Cameroon 102nd out of 130

Cameroon has dropped three positions in the 2006 Economic Freedom of the World Report released on Thursday by the Cato Institute in conjunction with the Fraser Institute. Although the country's score is the same as last year's (5.6 out of 10), it has nonetheless dropped from the 99th to the 102nd position (tying with Nigeria and Mali). The report surveyed 130 countries and used data from 2004, with 1970 as its base.

The Untouchables: Politically Mediated Loans and Political Impunity in Cameroon

Dibussi Tande

In his 1993 study on accumulation and the cultural politics of identity in the Grassfields (in Pathways to Accumulation in Cameroon), Michael Rowlands observed that in Cameroon, there was a “natural affinity between the stream of power and the stream of money or credit”.  He argued that the country was plagued by "an ethos of ostentatious consumption" and by "unproductive patterns of investment and reliance on the state patronage for accumulation".  The surest path to the accumulation of wealth in Cameroon was through politics.

The State of Information & Communications Technologies in Cameroon: A Government Perspective

Cameroon: Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper Third Annual Progress Report
Published: July 18, 2006
Series: IMF Country Report No. 06/260 (70 Pages)
Format: Electronic (free) & Paper (US$15.00)

The IMF today made public Cameroon's Third annual Progress Report which was submitted by that country's Government in February 2006,. The report is based on data which was valid as of December 31, 2005. According to the IMF, these country progress reports “describe the country's macroeconomic, structural, and social policies in support of growth and poverty reduction, as well as associated external financing needs and major sources of financing.”

HIPC Completion Point: The Challenge of Debt Sustainability

Dibussi Tande

On May 1, 2006 the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank confirmed that Cameroon had successfully reached the completion point of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. As a result, these institutions cancelled 1,400 billion CFA (2.1 billion euros, 2.7 billion dollars) of Cameroon’s 4,000-billion-CFA external public debt (See Press Release No. 06/85).

The decision of the donor institutions was received with elation within Government circles in Cameroon, and the official media has been painting the rosy picture of a new nation where the funds freed up as a result of the debt relief will be "reinvested in the fight against poverty".

Strengthening Transparency in the Oil Sector in Cameroon

Stéphane Cossé. Strengthening Transparency in the Oil Sector in Cameroon: Why Does it Matter? IMF Policy Discussion Paper No. 06/02. March 23, 2006.

Summary: There has been a growing recognition of the importance of transparency for economic growth and social development in oil producing countries. This paper analyzes transparency issues in Cameroon's oil sector. It shows that, while substantial efforts have already been undertaken, continued action is necessary to strengthen transparency. The paper seeks to identify why and how transparency, especially in the fiscal area, matters for economic development and poverty reduction in Cameroon.