CAMEROON – The government of Cameroon through the Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Animal Industries (Minepia) has issued a call for expression by interested investors wishing to invest in the country’s animal by-products processing sector.

To facilitate the project, the government has received funds from World Bank in the framework of the Livestock Development Project known as PRODEL.

The government will co-fund with the qualified private investors in the establishment of the processing units to the tune of XAF150 million (US$274,000) – XAF350 million (US$641,000), or 60% of the budget necessary to implement the business plan, reports Business in Cameroon.

The units to be built include dairy, pork, poultry, honey and beef processing units.

According to the calling document, interested investors need to submit their tender documents by February 5, 2021, to the Prodel coordination unit in Yaoundé.

Apart from boosting value addition of the products, implementation of these projects will have a significant impact on Cameroon’s trade balance as importation of processed food products weigh heavily on the economy.

The government will inject US$274,000 – US$641,000, or 60% of the budget necessary to implement the business plan

For instance, according to estimates by the French National Interprofessional Center for the Dairy Economy (Cniel), France exported over 305 tons of cheese and 1,835 tons of milk and dairy beverages to Cameroon in 2018.

Also, in 2015, the country spent XAF31 billion (US$56.8m), exceeding the average of XAF20 billion (US$36.6m)recorded since 2013 to import milk.

Meanwhile, the European Union has marked the completion of the XAF13.11 billion (US$23.7m) Agricultural Productivity Enhancement Program (SAPEP) in Cameroon with the launch of mini dairy processing plants in the Northern region of the country.

The dairies located in Maroua, Garoua, Ngaoundéré, and Meiganga will undertake milk processing, expanding the regions offering from fresh milk to pasteurized milk, yogurt, table butter, ice cream, and cheese, among other products.

EU has injected XAF6.5 billion (US$11.77m) in the dairy program, boosting the country’s daily milk processing capacity by 2,000 litres.

In addition to that, the project will ensure availability of nutritional products to the locals while creating about 120 permanent employment positions and hundreds of indirect jobs in the four regions.

The dairy support program is the last component of SAPEP, with the other components focusing on crop diversification in cotton producing areas and reviving the cocoa-coffee sector.

As the SAPEP comes to an end, EU in partnership with the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, have provided XAF12.7 bln (US$23m) to support the agroecological transition program ABC-PADER in the country.

The said program is aimed at improving the economic performance of private actors in the agriculture and livestock sector by promoting production systems adapted to climate change.

It also aims to strengthen the capacities of key players in this sector, particularly in aspects related to land and natural resource management, to preserve the environment.

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