The Head of State has authorised MINEPAT boss to sign the loan agreement with Eximbank.

Eximbank China will loan out 385,808,808.6 US dollars (about FCFA192.91 billion) to Cameroon for the partial financing of construction works on a double carriage road from Kribi to Lolabé in the Ocean Division of the South Region. A presidential decree of April 8, 2014 authorises the Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development (MINEPAT) to sign the loan agreement with EXIMBANK China.

The project is part of the industrial complex of the Kribi deep seaport project. It seeks to ease traffic to and from the port’s site. The Kribi-Lolabé axis represents phase one of the project which will also witness the construction of another phase from Kribi to Edea.

Information from the Kribi deep seaport project steering committee indicates that the Kribi-Lolabé axis is estimated at 453 million US dollars (about FCFA 215 billion). The FCFA 192.91 billion from EXIMBANK China represents 85 per cent of the project’s financing while the rest (15 per cent) is to come from the government of Cameroon.

Feasibility studies are said to be complete for the 38.5-km six-lane road project and once EXIMBANK disburses the funds, construction work will begin. But this will be after the contract has been awarded.

In an interview granted Cameroon Tribune recently, the Kribi deep seaport project Coordinator, Patrice Melom, said a double-carriage road needs at least 36 to 48 months to be ready. Given that the first ship is expected to anchor in Kribi next June, project stakeholders decided to engage the tarring of the 40 km road from Kribi town to the port site to facilitate the movement of goods in and out of the port when it effectively goes operational.