Radically transforming our agriculture

Despite the gradual decline in its relative importance since independence, the agricultural sector is of paramount importance for the Cameroonian economy. It employs around 53.2% of the labour force and has contributed around 21.3% of the country’s gross domestic product between 2010 and 2014 for around 40% of total non-oil export earnings.
Despite this acknowledged importance, the performance of the agricultural and rural sector has remained below expectations due to the fragility of food security and self-sufficiency, insufficient coverage of food demand, persistence and aggravation of poverty in rural areas, under such constraints as (i) the low production and productivity of farms, (ii) the difficulties of access to markets, (iii) the precarious living conditions in rural areas (iv) the weak organisation of the actors, (iv) the deteriorating natural environment, (vi) the inadequately adapted institutional environment and (vii) the insufficiency of funding.
However, Cameroon has all the ingredients to become one of the first African producers and not only of Central Africa.

Our main quantitative production objectives are:

  • Increase cocoa production from about 200,000 tons to 700,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase coffee production from about 40,000 tons to 100,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase maize production from about 2,150,000 tons to 5,000,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase rice production from about 150,000 tons to 500,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase production of millet / sorghum from around 1,200,000 tons to 2,500,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase the production of palm oil from about 400,000 tons to 800,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase cotton production from about 250,000 tons to 350,000 tons by 2025;
  • Increase the production of cashew nuts from about 33 tons to 50,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase cassava production from about 4,000,000 tons to 10,000,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase soybean production from about 15,000 tons to 50,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase tomato production from around 1,000,000 tons to 5,000,000 tons in 2025
  • Increase onion production from about 70,000 tons to 150,000 tons in 2025;
  • Increase plantain production from about 3,500,000 tons to 6,000,000 tons in 2025.

Our agricultural policy will ensure the country’s food security while providing income for producers. As such, we will make Cameroon a net exporter of agricultural products, and organic farming an engine of growth and improvement of the efficiency of our agricultural and agri-food sector.
We will create an agricultural land agency. It will proceed with the development taking into account the environment, carry out the irrigation, and pay a rent to the native communities for the lay-over of their lands. The available plots will be published on the Agency’s website and will be rented to potential investors with precise specifications. The goal is to develop 1 million hectares of farmland in one term

We will transform some high schools in high school teaching agricultural techniques, agri-food and livestock and will create new ones. The aim is to create a high school of agricultural and livestock techniques by division or about 60. (This is part of the program to combat the non-employment of young people.) At the rate of 10 high schools per year at the cost of 2 billion per school, the total cost will be 20 billion per year). From Sixième/Form 1 to CAP (Training a skilled agricultural worker). From Seconde/Form 5 to Terminale/Upper Sixth (To train an agricultural technician). In BTS cycle (train technicians of the food industry, the seed industry, the industry of agricultural, poultry and livestock inputs, laboratories for biological analysis and quality of food).
To operationalise the idea of agricultural mechanisation, we will create cooperatives of agricultural mechanisation. A cooperative by agricultural basin or by subdivision. Each cooperative will acquire with a line of credit made available by the State, cows and ploughs, small motorised ploughmen, a tractor with its ploughing, its grader, the excavator and its accessories. All this quality equipment will cost up to 50 million, or about 8 billion for the total cost. It will be financed by zero-rate credits repayable over 5 years. The farmer will pay for the rental of the equipment. The cooperative will be managed by its members.
We will implement a priority policy of systematic opening up of the production basins.
We will promote better organisation and increase the efficiency of the family farms that remain the most numerous in the agrarian structure of our country and contribute to the construction of sustainable and diversified ecosystems.
We will also promote the development of modern agriculture from the large plantations producing both traditional cash crops and food products for the international market.
We will introduce new varieties of agricultural products based on agro-ecological areas, such as cashew (which produces cashew nuts) in the northern part of the country.
Finally, we will promote the development of value chains that link consumer demand with small producers as well as the mastery of agricultural techniques that promote the agro-ecosystem, biodiversity, soil biological activities and biological cycles.

    Secure access to land ownership

    Cameroon’s new land policy, embodied in the land-use plan, will very precisely define the rules of access to land ownership to further guarantee a rational use that takes into account the imperatives of defence or the economic options of the nation.
    Securing access to land ownership should allow us to increase not only the number of farmers, large and small, but also the total area cultivated.

    A large farm coupled with a network of small farms

    • We will encourage the creation of large farms of at least 100 ha with around them a network of small farms. The large farm will have storage warehouses, small processing units. It will be the privileged client of small farms.
    • We will encourage small farmers to join together as a cooperative and take a stake in larger farms.
    • We will promote the mechanisation of large farms as well as small ones in order to reduce the difficulty of farmers’ work for the purpose of increasing yields.
    • We will encourage local production of machinery for small mechanisation.
    • We will use our universities, research centres and industries to develop agricultural equipment that is adapted to the needs and resources of small farmers.
    • We will support small mechanisation by granting credit to cooperatives via banks with a guarantee from the State.
    • We will bring small farmers to pool their resources to acquire these small machines and use them collectively.
    • We will encourage the assembly and manufacture in Cameroon of machinery that will be used for the great mechanisation essential for large farms.

    Agricultural inputs permanently available

    • We will facilitate access to production factors to improve productivity, including through the creation of a national seed, the creation of production structures and/or supply of fertilizers and phytosanitary products at reasonable prices, the development of natural fertilizers.
    • We will put in place a real weather forecast system to help our farmers plan their production efficiently. This weather system will be available on the Internet and will also be available for free on mobile phones.
    • We will use water from the Sanaga and other water courses in the country to irrigate farms along their basins for more sustained agriculture.

    Organic farming under a label and an integrated agro-industrial sector

    • We will analyse the market to identify niches for which we will develop organic farming. In this perspective, we will develop production in the framework of sectors structured around an organic label made in Cameroon.
    • We will set up specialised agropolises according to the production basins.
    • We will support the development of large and small product processing units to enable Cameroon to benefit from the added value and jobs that will be generated by the processing of agricultural products. In this perspective, at least one flagship culture will be identified and supported by
      Region (or federated entity).
    • We intend to bring back Cameroon to its position as the second largest cocoa producer in 10 years. In this perspective, like other African cocoa-producing countries, we expect to develop a real local chocolate production industry from the cocoa we produce.
    • We will strengthen maize production to cover domestic consumption in the next 10 years.
    • We will create appropriate financing mechanisms, distinguishing
      the financing structures of large farms from those of financing family farms.

    Support to training and setting of quality standards and traceability

    • We will strengthen the training and popularisation of agricultural techniques mainly for the products we have chosen to support.
    • We will open sections for training and research related to the region’s flagship products at each regional university.
    • Our training and trade centres will be equipped.
    • We will define the quality standards to be applied for our products.
    • We will organise and ensure greater product traceability.