The Executive Director of Youth Employment Service, YES, Gilbert Ewehmeh, has identified corruption as the major obstacle to job creation and entrepreneurship in Cameroon.

He was speaking during the opening ceremony of second edition of the International Summit on Entrepreneurship and Job Creation, ISEJC that is underway in Yaounde.

The summit is hinged on the theme: “Entrepreneurship and innovation: unleashing the nation’s economy potentials.”

According to Ewehmeh, the objective of the Summit is to fight against youth unemployment by training youths on leadership and entrepreneur.

Describing the business climate in Cameroon, Ewehmeh said: “It is very difficult for young people to start up a business due to the corrupt system.

The law in Cameroon states that, within 72 hours, one can create a business, but this is false. The process involved is so long and discouraging.

Also, our youths face the problem of getting start-up capital as banks and micro-financial institutions do not fund projects. These institutions demand that you have a guarantee or financial security.”

Elaborating on these difficulties, Abel Akara Ticha, who represented the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, UNECA, traced the root of the problem to the mentality of the youths, who, he said, do not dream.

“Our youths are no longer dreaming big. Even when they dream big, they tend to be afraid of their dreams. They look at dreams as demons. There is no way you can achieve anything if you don’t get to what would be called the impossible.

There is no fun in doing what is so possible. You have to do the impossible, and then you have to think out of the box and have your adrenaline rise. Even if you don’t get to the roof top, you will get somewhere,” Akara said.

Josian Mbakop, one of the sponsors of the event, said the summit is key, as it would serve as an antidote to the defeatist mentality of Cameroonian youths. It was in this light, she said, the summit would encourage 10 most outstanding entrepreneurs.

Asked what the criteria are for choosing the laureates, she said participants would be rated on the basis of their entrepreneurial capacities, mastery of their business domain, the feasibility of the project and their communication skills.

Winners in this contest dubbed the Inspire Cameroon Contest would benefit from loans estimated at FCFA millions, coaching and training seminars.