(Business in Cameroon) – On November 26, during his general policy address at the National Assembly, Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute announced that 384.95 km of roads had been paved as of 30 September 2025. This figure represents just over half of the government’s annual target of 754.76 km of paved roads.
The Prime Minister did not detail the reasons for this shortfall. However, the Ministry of Public Works noted that Cameroon faces “enormous difficulties in paving roads” because of weak investment, itself linked to a lack of financing.
This pace falls short of the ambitions set out in the 2020–2030 National Development Strategy (SND30). The reference document calls for 6,000 km of additional paved roads over the period, or an average of 600 km per year. With 384.95 km completed by the end of September 2025, progress remains below this target.
For 2026, the government is setting more ambitious goals: the delivery of nearly 650 km of paved roads and more than 1,300 linear meters of engineering structures. For now, the results remain modest. As of 31 December 2024, Cameroon had only 10,576 km of paved roads nationwide, according to the Ministry of Public Works. This represents just 8.6% of a national road network stretching 121,873 km, underscoring the scale of the delays in modernizing the country’s infrastructure.
Frédéric Nonos
