Construction works on the first phase of the multi-billion Deep Seaport Project in Mboro, Kribi, Ocean Division of the South Region was estimated at 81.07 per cent as from January 22, 2014. All things being equal, the ongoing phase is expected to be complete by mid this year, the Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Project, Louis Paul Motaze has said.

Talking to the press after the project's 14th steering committee meeting on Thursday January 30, Louis Paul Motaze, also Secretary General at the Prime Minister's office said, "a ship carrying heavy equipment that the port needs for its functioning is already in Cameroonian waters and will anchor in Kribi. This means that the port can already receive ships."

Documentation shows that the protection dyke of the port is already 85.67 per cent complete, filling and the dynamic compacting is 87.67 per cent gone, draining of the access channel 95.5 per cent complete and the construction of the container and polyvalent terminals 86.24 per cent. It also emerged from Thursday's session that the construction of the north enclosure dyke is 79 per cent done, that of the south enclosure dyke 68 per cent and the construction of auxiliary structures like the administrative buildings, refectories, electrical stations, water treatment stations and others executed at 56.67 per cent.

Meanwhile, the acquisition, transportation, installation and testing of port equipment is about 67.83 per cent gone. Construction is also ongoing on the access roads by Razel Cameroun for Lot 1 (about 12.5 km from Kienké bridge to end of Grand Batanga) and Lot 2 by China Harbour Engineering Company (about 21 km from end of Grand Batanga to the port site at Mboro).

The project's steering committee chairman said priority is to have a port that is efficient and that the committee is already working beyond June 2014 when the first phase ends. "The studies we have carried out indicate that in 2018, we will need some more terminals and for them to be ready at that time, we need to begin construction now," Mr Motaze added. He said calls for tenders for the second phase which did not yield the desired fruit will be relaunched.

Studies are also said to be on course to develop the specialised industrial zones of Kribi, supply it with potable water and electricity, put in place a geographic information system, create a maritime, ports and industrial institute as well as a special economic zone.