The participation of the Cameroonian Head of State in the Russia-Africa summit held in Saint Petersburg will be able to relaunch the economic aspect currently injured in the framework of relations with Russia.
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Cooperation relations between Cameroon and Russia have existed since the 1960s and 1970s. They are mainly in the military, trade and humanitarian assistance fields. Russia has notably provided aid to Cameroon in terms of civil protection (natural disasters) and in terms of the preservation of peace, stability and security. This is also the case for the fight against terrorist attacks. However, we note that the economic aspect of the agreements between the two countries is very underdeveloped.
Only two infrastructure projects have been carried out in Cameroon thanks to the support of Russia: the construction of the National School of Water and Forests in Mbalmayo and the construction of a School of Agriculture in Dschang. However, areas of cooperation in this area are not lacking. At the end of an audience granted in 2015 by Paul BIYA to the Russian Ambassador to Cameroon, it was agreed that the country could benefit from Russian expertise in the field of industry and energy with the participation banks and large Russian companies. We could also mention the presentation of the Russian government’s offer for investment in Cameroon, at the conclusion of a bilateral cooperation agreement. An activity that took place in September 2018 during an audience between the Minister of Economy and a delegation from the Russian Business Promotion Agency “Russian Business Centre”. The participation of a Cameroonian delegation at the 2nd Summit Russia-Africa conference in Saint Petersburg is therefore seen as an opportunity to finalize the steps taken to attract Russian investment to Cameroon and increase the volume of trade with this partner.
In a global context marked by difficulties in mobilizing funding from certain traditional partners, the Russian track could also be an alternative for the implementation of major structuring projects. Russia can intervene in the mobilization of development aid; the promotion of foreign direct investment (FDI); trade capacity building and partnership development; increasing the possibilities of mobilizing resources through decentralized cooperation, etc.
Cameroon’s strengths in this plea for the attraction of investment from Russia include its strategic geographical position, the existence of a skilled workforce, a diversified and resilient economy, the availability of raw materials etc
