The Cameroon National Shippers’ Council (CNSC) and the Chadian Shippers’ Council (COC-Chad) have signed a cooperation agreement aimed at modernising the Douala-Kribi/N’Djamena transport corridor. This, officials say, has as aim to improve cargo transit, reduce bottlenecks and strengthen trade flows between the two countries and the wider Central African sub-region.
The protocol agreement was signed recently at the headquarters of COC-Chad in N’Djamena during the 5th edition of the Chad-Cameroon-Central African Republic tripartite forum hosted by Chad. The agreement was signed by CNSC Director General Auguste Mbappe Penda and COC-Chad Director General Hamid Djoumino, in the presence of Cyrus Ngo’o, the Director General of the Port Authority of Douala.
According to information published by the CNSC on Facebook, the agreement seeks to position the Douala-Kribi/N’Djamena corridor as a strategic logistics route for Central Africa by improving the movement of goods between the Atlantic coast and landlocked Chad. It emerged from the signing that the protocol focuses on the interconnection of information systems, electronic cargo tracking, customs facilitation and the creation of a shared digital platform for monitoring transit operations and handling complaints from economic operators.
Officials revealed during the signing that the initiative also targets the reduction of irregular practices along the corridor, the production of performance statistics and the mobilisation of technical and financial partners to support infrastructure and logistics reforms. The two institutions said the objective is to create a smoother and less restrictive corridor for importers, exporters and transporters operating between Cameroon and Chad.
For Chad, which relies heavily on the Douala corridor for access to international markets, the agreement is expected to reinforce supply chain coordination and support import-export operations passing through the Port of Douala and the Port of Kribi. Officials said more than 80 per cent of Chadian imports transit through Cameroon, making the corridor a strategic commercial route for the country’s external trade.
Speaking after the signing ceremony, CNSC Director General Auguste Mbappe Penda said the agreement would allow both institutions to improve support mechanisms for shippers and economic operators facing operational difficulties along the transit chain.
He said the convention was centred on “the exchange of data between our two platforms” and on assistance for operators in both countries. He added that Chadian operators encountering problems in Cameroon would be able to seek support from the Port Authority of Douala and the CNSC, while Cameroonian operators in Chad would receive support from COC-Chad and Chadian customs authorities.
“We will have a single platform on which operators will be able to submit their problems and requests so that solutions can be found in the fastest possible way. All stakeholders, including the shippers’ councils, port authorities and customs administrations of both countries, are expected to be involved in this system,” Mbappe Penda said.
COC-Chad Director General Hamid Djoumino said the partnership reflected a common commitment to support traders and transport operators using the corridor linking Chad to Cameroon’s maritime gateways.
He noted that Chad and Cameroon were closely linked trading partners whose economic operators depended on coordinated support services during transit operations. He added that the agreement would help improve assistance mechanisms for transporters and importers using the corridor.
“We are two neighbouring countries and we must combine our efforts to support external trade operators. This alliance will help improve conditions for shippers and transporters moving goods through the corridor,” Djoumino said.
Mercy Fosoh
