Inside Cameroon

MTN Group Ltd on Thursday March 9, said it is considering investing in countries such as Cameroon, classified by the group as “conflict markets.
In a recent review on its markets across Africa and the Middle East, the mobile-phone company states that is doing a spring clean of its empire in these countries.
According to the Group Chief Financial Officer, Ralph Mupita, the company plans to take “appropriate action” if any of these countries are not cash-flow positive.

Regarding Cameroon, Mupita said MTN received a $6.6 million fine from Cameroon’s telecommunications regulator and a one-year reduction in its license term for allegedly not complying with spectrum and subscriber registration regulations.
Mupita also revealed that the company was also ordered to disconnect 3 million subscribers.“It’s a big priority to resolve this in the near term,” Mupita said. “If it’s not resolvable, then it’s not resolvable. We want to find an amicable resolution to stay.
Cameroon’s government, it would be recalled, had exhorted mobile companies including MTN, to cut internet from subscribers, in an attempt to douse protests from English speaking Cameroonians. Despite pressures from rights groups and international organisations against the ban, government remained adamant. 
Government’s shutdown of internet in English speaking Cameroon had made life extremely difficult for millions of people in the country. Citizens in dire need of internet connectivity were forced beyond endurance to hunt for the high-tech communication technology in neighbouring cities making them to be tagged as internet refugees. The Internet blackout did not only slow down businesses but shut them out with associated heavy financial losses
A coalition of rights groups monitoring internet outage recently disclosed that Cameroon lost over $2.69 million during the internet shutdown.
Internet in Anglophone Cameroon, was partially restored on April 20, 2017, after three months blackout.
MTN Cameroon FY revenue falls due to lower subscriber base
MTN Cameroon’s total revenue in 2017 decreased by 6.6 percent on an organic basis to ZAR 5.38 billion, hit by the lower subscriber base and offset by 21.1 percent growth in data and a 27.4 percent rise in digital revenue. MTN still experienced a challenging operating environment, following the data shutdown and a slowdown in economic activity, which had a material impact on subscriber and revenue growth in the year.
The business suffered a number of operational challenges, too. The subscriber base closed the year at 7.1 million, after the disconnection of approximately 3.0 million subscribers in early October 2017 to comply with regulatory requirements on subscriber registration. The company had stated 9.45 million subscribers on 30 September and 9.87 million at end-2016.
Active Mobile Money customers increased 194.2 percent to 1.1 million, with revenue up 767 percent year-on-year
By Elah Geofrey with additional reports from Journal du Cameroon

Details

Rita Akana

16.Mar.2018

Hits: 3332

Cameroon: Ministerial conference holding today, 15th of March,2018.

It's the first ministerial conference since the last ministerial appointment and cabinet reshuffle.
It must be noted that the last cabinet reshuffle took place on the 2nd of March,2018.
President Paul Biya shall be meeting the entire cabinet of ministers at the Presidential Palace at Etoudi.
Invited to this cabinet meeting are the following according to their ministerial rankings:
The Prime Minister
Vice Prime Minister.
Ministers of state.
Ministers
Minister Delegate and secretary of States.
The meeting is scheduled for 11am and shall entirely dwell on " The special Presidential press release, being the lone agenda."
It's worth noting that the last cabinet meeting, held on the 15th of October 2015,shortly after after the previous cabinet reshuffle of 2nd October, 2015.
During this cabinet meeting, President Paul Biya overwhelmingly prescribed to the ministers " The acceleration of work towards the very highly awaited African Nations cup tournaments for both women,scheduled for 2016 and Men, schedule for 2019."
Today's cabinet meeting shall be the first cabinet meeting for those newly appointed ministers.
Those newly appointed members of government are Joseph Le, Gaston Eloundu Essomba, Elanga Obam George, Paul Tasong and Nalova Lyonga.

Details

Rita Akana

15.Mar.2018

Hits: 2876

At the end of a meeting between Paul Biya and the Chinese ambassador to Cameroon, Wei Wenhua, (on March 13, 2018, in Yaoundé) it was revealed that Xi Jinping, China’s president, has invited his Cameroonian peer for a state visit in China. This will be organized in the next few days, the presidency commented.

« This new visit will highlight the good relations between China and Cameroon. It also occurs at a crucial time for China due particularly to the 13th National People’s Congress during which the country’s leadership was renewed », it added. It further disclosed that Paul Biya would be one of the first African heads of state to meet China’s newly chosen officials.

For the record, Paul Biya’s last visit to China dates back to 2011.As far as China-Cameroon relations is concerned, it dates back to 1971 and by end 2017, this country had supported Cameroon with CFA3,000 billion. These supports were namely loans and grants through various funders such as Export-Import Bank Of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank Of China, Bank Of China…etc.

BIC

Details

Rita Akana

15.Mar.2018

Hits: 2496

Laurent Esso’o wants to hire 20 Anglophone Bailiffs and the conditions of eligibility include former Magistrates, former Court Registrars-in-Chief, Court Registrars and Court Registry Administrators and Lawyers with at least five years of professional experience. This kind of corruption wears a cap and whistles.

Retired Magistrates and Court Registrars are amongst the most corrupt in the Judiciary and have amassed enough wealth to buy their way into these jobs that have been ostensibly earmarked for youths, especially law graduates. How does Esso’o expect the army of unemployed law graduates (most of them bike riders) to get five years of professional experience when then have not been given the opportunity to work?

What is it about Cameroon that people don't want to go on retirement? Why bring back retired magistrates and court registrars?

Is Laurent Esso'o so dull as to be unable to figure out that the current Anglophone crisis is deeply embedded in the generational question? And come to think of it, the communique to hire Anglophones is written in French. These people have no sense of shame. As we say in pidgin, wunna dross di show...

Details

Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai

15.Mar.2018

Hits: 2697

The Gendarmerie elements of the Adamawa Region of the Northern region of Cameroon had seized this huge package of fuel on the night of 2nd and 3rd of March,2018. The seized contraband fuel of 31800 was on its way to the Northern Region, Garoua. The owner of the truck, the keeper of the Vehicles documents hold that 159 drums,worth 200 litres that were transported, would have been delivered in the town of Garoua-Boulai, in the South Region of Cameroon. Here the customer would have off loaded the goods for the Central African Republic.

Details

Rita Akana

14.Mar.2018

Hits: 2694

Guy Robert Berlin Lontsi died as a result of the heavy gun battle that erupted between forces of LA Republique Du Cameroun and the restoration forces on Tuesday the 13th of March, 2018, in Nguti , a locality in the South West Region. This happened in the wee hours of the morning as the restoration forces stormed the Gendarmerie brigade, armed to teeth.

From 6am to 11 am, the forces of LA Republique Du Cameroun and the restoration forces confronted headlong in Nguti. This deadly confrontation saw the killing of the Brigade Commander, Guy Robert Berlin Lontsi, recently appointed to Nguti.

He was heavily wounded during the brutal confrontation with the restoration forces and died afterward in the hospital. A student Gendarmerie element was equally wounded and it's reported that three of the restoration forces were overpowered by the forces of LA Republique Du Cameroun and their weapons seized.

Details

Rita Akana

13.Mar.2018

Hits: 3107