(Business in Cameroon) – The Douala Urban Community (CUD) is planning to build an affordable housing development on a 9-hectare site in Mbanga-Bakoko, located in the third district of the economic capital. The project will be situated on remaining land dedicated to social housing in the area, and the site can be accessed via two entrances—one to the north from the Chirac neighborhood, one to the west from Village, and a southern entrance (currently under development) connecting directly to National Route No. 3, which links Douala to Yaoundé.
The development will consist of 10 buildings, each with six floors above ground and one basement, offering a total of 360 medium- and high-standard housing units. The plan also includes a multi-sport gymnasium for indoor football, handball, tennis, and basketball; a swimming pool with surrounding commercial spaces; a party hall complex; three office buildings; landscaped areas; a drainage system; and parking spaces.
According to the Douala city hall, the total cost of the project, designed for the middle class, is estimated at CFA 23.5 billion. “We are currently working on a call for tenders to secure financing, construction, and management for the project,” said an official from the CUD. This suggests that a public-private partnership (PPP) will likely be the preferred financing model for the development.
The initiative aims to provide new housing in a city with nearly 4 million residents, facing a severe housing shortage, with about 10,000 newcomers arriving each month, according to the CUD. This new urban development complements government efforts to address the country’s housing deficit.
Official figures show that Cameroon has a shortfall of around 2.5 million social housing units. To address this, the government launched a program in 2009 to build 10,000 social housing units, along with the development of 50,000 buildable plots. The pilot phase included 1,675 units. To date, nearly 2,000 units have been completed in cities such as Yaoundé, Douala, Bafoussam, Limbe, Bamenda, and Sangmélima.
