Cameroon to audit telecoms network-International call for tenders to be launched soonest

The Cameroonian government will launch, in the coming days, an international call for tenders, to recruit a consultant in charge of carrying out an audit on the telecoms network in the country, we learned from authorised sources.

The Prime Minister, Philémon Yang, has indeed just given his approval to carry out this first audit of the Cameroonian telecoms network. This decision marks a decisive step in the battle to improve telecoms services in Cameroon, which is spearheaded by the Minister of Posts and Telecoms, Minette Libom Li Likeng, who reached the top office of this ministry on 2 October 2015.

Indeed, within this ministry, top officials insist that even though there is a fierce competition between operators in activity in the sector in Cameroon to control a rapidly growing market, particularly with the recent arrival of 3 and 4G; this competition leaves unfortunately very little room for consumer service quality.

Proof of this are the numerous complaints from Cameroonian consumers, who are generally dealing with breaks in the internet service or even during calls, invoicing errors, etc. This situation even led consumer associations to take legal action, last year, against not only operators, but also the regulatory authority in the telecoms sector in Cameroon, accused of playing the wait and see game and permissiveness in carrying out its missions.

According to our sources, the announced audit is the result of discussions started months ago by Minister Libom Li Likeng, with all the actors in the telecoms sector. Indeed, we learn, the Permanent Public-Private Consultation Committee for the Posts and Telecommunications sector (CPPT) was created on 29 January 2016 within the Ministry of Posts and Telecoms.

The main objectives of this body, our sources specify, are to list the preoccupations of the users, the expectations of the private operators, register the malfunctions noted in the telecoms sector and propose to the government measures which could help with yield improvement.

BIC