Electronic Governance National Strategy Underway

"His Excellency Philemon YANG, Prime Minister, Head of Government today Thursday 28 March 2013 as from 11 am chaired an important Cabinet Meeting in the main building of the Prime Minister's Office. The meeting was attended by the Vice Prime Minister, Ministers of State, Ministers, Ministers Delegate as well as the Secretaries of State.

Two statements featured on the agenda, namely:

A statement by the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications on « the E.Government or Electronic Administration National Strategy » ;

A statement by the Minister of State Property, Surveys and Land Tenure on «the Evaluation of the Implementation of the Support Project for the Modernization of State Property and Business Climate(PAMACCO)».

The meeting first listened to the statement of the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications on the « Electronic Administration National Strategy », which revealed that this terminology refers to the use of information and communication technologies to enhance administrative procedures, communication between administration services and with citizens, for a greater efficiency of services and increased output of Government workers.

He stated that the Government has, since a decade, implemented several actions in this direction, such as the connection of almost all the ministries by fiber optic, the creation of websites or the putting online of certain administrative documents and forms.

However, to decisively install electronic administration in Government services, we need a strategy. Its formulation has been entrusted to the National Information and Communication Technologies Agency (ANTIC), the main thrusts being: the training of human resources, technological choices, security, planning, and programming, the choice of services and applications, coordination/supervision and change management.

The Minister stated that after its imminent adoption, the implementation of this strategy will boost, quantitatively and qualitatively, the supply to users of services and information by electronic media in administration services, with the dematerialization of forms, the introduction of tele-procedures and their simplification, while exchanges between services will be easier.

At the end of ensuing discussions, the Head of Government enjoined the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications to finalize, as soon as possible, the ongoing formulation of the National e.Government Strategy and to put in place the legal framework to back it.

The floor was then given to the Minister of State Property, Surveys and Land Tenure to report on the implementation of the Support Project for the Modernization of Land Tenure and Business Climate (PAMOCCA) The Minister noted that PAMOCCA has as objective to put in place a national polyvalent and reliable land tenure, likely to upscale the land assets of Cameroon and to make them readily available for socio-economic development. The project is funded by the African Development Bank to the tune of CFA F 5,352 billion and a national counterpart of about CFA F 922 million.

The specific objectives of the programme are, among others, the modernization of the lands and State property system, the upgrading of national land to foster investments and the consolidation of the reliability of the land title, especially in bank transactions.

The results expected in the pilot phase, which is going on in the towns of Yaounde, Douala, Garoua and Maroua, include a denser survey network, the computerization of land documents, the digitalization of 120 000 land titles and the opening of a lands databank of 480 000 plots.

The minister stated that since it was launched on 9 March 2012, PAMOCCA was in the deployment phase, it will reach its cruising speed in the coming months, if the hurdles related to the award of contracts, to the provision of counterpart funds and other bottlenecks are solved.

At the end of this statement, the Prime Minister gave instructions for a more diligent implementation of this major project, one to the Minister in charge of Public Contracts for the setting up of a special tenders' board at the level of PAMOCCA.

The meeting ended at 12.35 pm."

Yaoundé, 28 March 2013

GHOGOMU Paul MINGO,

DIRECTOR OF PRIME MINISTER'S CABINET