State to transfer maintenance of 30,000 km of roads to local authorities

As part of the decentralisation process which has been ongoing for some years in the country, the Cameroonian government is planning to transfer to 360 municipalities of the country, the maintenance of approximately 30,000 km of roads, Moubain Matapit Issofa, the permanent Secretary of the National Road Council, reveals.

According to the same source, the transfers of financial resources which accompany this government decision will be in excess of FCfa 10 billion.

This, as we learn that in addition to the transfers from the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing, the Ministry of Public Works for its part will transfer FCfa 28 million to each municipality.

Despite the advantages it provides in terms of local development, the decentralisation, as implemented in Cameroon, does not yet satisfy the local elected officials. They are lamenting that this transfer of financial resources, though announced in official statements, has not yet materialised.

Indeed, we learn, though the services have been transferred at the administrative level, the procurement of contracts remains the privilege of the central administration.

Similarly, the corresponding financial resources are made available to them through budget lines managed by the Treasury Department, who pays the contractors directly.