Peter Ayuk Akpoeban, Treasurer Paymaster General (TPG) of the South West Region has regretted that the Ebola fever that broke out in neighbouring Nigeria last year greatly impacted negatively on the revenue collection for the year 2014.

The TPG said given that the borders with Nigeria were blocked during this period as economic activities slowed down and as such, revenue collection witnessed some difficulties, though an increase was recorded as compared to 2013.

Ayuk Akpoeban was speaking at the fourth coordination meeting of treasury accountants held at the Buea Council Hall on February 13, 2015.

“…It is worth noting that in spite of the difficulties in recoveries that were as a result of the closing of the borders with the outbreak of the Ebola infection in some of our neighbouring countries, we still could observe an increase of slightly over FCFA 20 million from about FCFA 46 million recovered in 2013,” the TPG said.

He lauded the efforts of the revenue recovery officers in the region, urging them to do even better in 2015.

Given that revenue collected from toll gates and weighing stations seem not to have been paid fully into the state treasury, the TPG took measures to control these sectors.

“…I opened a special follow up register for the evaluation of the receipts coming from our Toll gates and Weighing Stations and the exploitation of that register of December 31, 2014 permitted us to witness an improved performance,” he said.

A slightly over FCFA 9 million increase was recorded in the Toll Gate and Weighing Station collections, as against circa FCFA 468 million in 2013.

The TPG was quick to point out that unlike with the Toll gates where money is generated; the Weighing Stations are not primarily to make money. He said the weighing stations are there to ensure that the roads are not destroyed by vehicles carrying more goods than they should.

After presenting lots of figures that x-rayed the financial balance sheet of the South West in 2014, the TPG reminded stakeholders that the complementary period for the 2014 budget ends on February 28.

He called on those involved to speed up the execution process of projects engaged in 2014.

2014 was the second year of the implementation of the programme-budgeting system of the state.