(Business in Cameroon) – Cameroon’s Nohi Chocolateries, a company specializing in local cocoa processing, signed a five-year partnership with Algerian industrial firm Technocast in Algiers on Sept. 11, 2025, on the sidelines of the 4th Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF).
Under the agreement, Nohi will export products such as eating chocolate, baking chocolate, pastry chocolate, and other processed food items to Algeria starting in January 2026. In return, Technocast will handle industrial maintenance for Nohi’s equipment, offering “sustainable, effective, and tailored solutions to its needs.”
Algerian Market Valued at Over 65 billion CFA francs
Hypolyte Nozawo Tchoffo, manager of Nohi Sarl, said the deal opens up “a market of over 100 million euros, or more than 65 billion CFA francs per year, which we must work hard to conquer.” He expects the partnership to help the company scale up its currently modest production to meet rising demand. “Since orders are spread over the year, we will work to satisfy them gradually,” he said.
Tchoffo sees the deal as a growth driver and a step toward regional and international expansion for the SME. Domestically, the partnership could help boost Cameroon’s export revenues from processed cocoa products. In 2023, the country exported 73,236 tonnes of such products, generating 153 billion CFA francs, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INS).
In the third quarter of 2024 alone, cocoa paste exports reached 13,236 tonnes, bringing in 49.9 billion CFA francs, a year-on-year increase of 34.2 billion francs, or 218%, according to the Directorate General of Customs. This surge underscores the growing contribution of cocoa derivatives to Cameroon’s agro-industrial export earnings.
CNCC-Supported Integrated Chocolate Producer
Founded in 2017 in Douala, Nohi Chocolateries runs a 10-hectare integrated plantation within a 60-hectare cooperative, ensuring a steady local bean supply for producing chocolate bars made entirely from Cameroonian raw materials.
Nohi’s participation in the 4th IATF was backed by the Cameroon National Shippers’ Council (CNCC). Its General Manager, Auguste Mbappé Penda, announced on Oct. 17, 2025, that talks were underway with Afreximbank to improve access to financing for local SMEs and support their growth across African markets.
This initiative is part of the CNCC’s broader goal of strengthening Cameroon’s economic competitiveness under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The CNCC had previously held talks with Algerian firm Alfilect during the IATF 2023 in Egypt, which led to the first containerized export under the AfCFTA framework, 99.4 tons of aluminum ingots shipped from the port of Douala on July 5, 2024.
Frédéric Nonos
