Edouard Fochive, economist and logistics expert at Cabinet Projet Assistance Conseils

How does Douala compare with the capital Youandé?

Edouard Fochive - While Yaoundé is the country's economic capital, Douala is its political capital as well as a port city, as Cameroon has two maritime fronts: Douala and Kribi. However, Douala is currently the most important economic hub in the country. The attraction of the city is such that Douala is the mother of the country. There has been an exodus of people from the hinterland to the seafront, which has brought the population to almost four million. The primary objective today is to fight poverty and integrate this huge population that has moved from the hinterland to this port area that is Douala, and to make this city a real maritime economic hub for the CEMA zone.

What strategy has been put in place to achieve this?

E. F. - First of all, there is the principle of improving the standard of living of the people who have converged on the port area. Then, of course, there is economic development, which aims to improve the city's competitiveness. And finally, there is the improvement of environmental conditions and governance. Without adhering to governance criteria, the city cannot succeed in achieving its objectives.

Which major sectors are attracting foreign investors?

E. F. - What makes Douala special is that it offers investors an industrial base with local raw materials such as wood, coffee and cocoa, and everything related to petrochemicals. These are the sectors that investors are most attracted to.

What improvements have you seen in infrastructure in recent years?

E. F. - Douala is the port city of Cameroon, but also of countries with no maritime corridor, such as Chad and the Central African Republic, so roads play an important role in linking the port area to national industrial hubs and to the countries behind. There has been considerable development of these roads, as well as of logistics platforms. In Douala itself, the western ring road leads to the major agricultural production areas. To the east, a road links the port to the central zone, the industrial logistics zones, the routes to neighbouring countries, and also the large omnisport stadium that will host the Nations Cup. Work is continuing to finalise infrastructure improvements: we need to finish linking Douala to Yaoundé, we need to link the political capital to Bafoussan, which is the major agricultural production zone: all this is underway.

How do you see Douala's future?

E. F. - By 2035, Douala will have become the region's major port city, between the port of Limbé and the port of Kribi, and with these three seafront ports, Douala will be the real gateway to Central Africa. Admittedly, there are challenges: the crisis in the English-speaking regions is not working in Douala's favour, but the launch of the future deep-water port of Limbé will be an economic boon for this English-speaking area by rebuilding an economic engine. As for the crisis at the port, after a number of problems with delivery rates, the resumption of management of the Douala container terminal has also had a positive outcome, as confirmed by sales figures for the first half of the year.