On Tuesday, 23 June 2026, the president of the Cameroon Business Group (GECAM) delivered a stark assessment of the dire conditions hampering the nation’s economic development.
According to the GECAM leader, Cameroon’s growth rate dropped to 3.1% in 2025, down from 3.5% in 2024, a pace he considers insufficient for the country’s emergence target of 2035. By comparison, sub-Saharan Africa is projected to average 4.5% growth, while the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) is expected to reach 6.4%, against only 2.6% for the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (Cemac), where Cameroon remains the largest economy.
This underperformance is largely attributed to the collapse of the oil sector. The hydrocarbons segment contracted by 6.9% in 2025, following a sharp decline of 9.7% in 2024, confirming that oil is no longer the primary driver of growth in Cameroon, according to GECAM.
286,000 tonnes
Other sectors paint an equally worrying picture. Growth in the primary sector fell from 3.6% to 1.7% over one year. Industrial and export agriculture swung from a positive 8.7% in 2024 to a negative 3.2% in 2025, due to climatic difficulties and declining exports across several value chains, he added.
Cotton stands out as a key symbol of this deterioration. Production reached only 286,000 tonnes, far short of the 400,000-tonne target. Export volumes dropped 24%, while the value of exports plummeted 29.8%.
1.7% to 2%
“Even the most performing sectors reveal certain fragilities. The cocoa campaign recorded a record production of 309,518 tonnes, but export volumes declined by 9%, despite an 18% increase in export value thanks to soaring global prices. Coffee follows a similar trend: production rose from 10,562 to 11,637 tonnes, while exported quantities fell by 2%, offset by a 3.9% increase in revenues,” explained the head of the employers’ organisation.
Meanwhile, Cameroon continues to increase its food dependency. Maize imports grew by 4.5%, illustrating ongoing difficulties in ensuring national food security, according to GECAM. The industrial sector is also struggling to play its role as an engine of economic transformation. Its growth only inched from 1.7% to 2%, while manufacturing slowed from 2.9% to 2.2%. The business community attributes this situation to high energy costs, logistical challenges, financing constraints, and a lack of competitiveness in the productive apparatus.
