(Business in Cameroon) – The Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Crafts (Ccima) has recommended that the government broaden the tax base by focusing on better risk management. This suggestion was made on August 27, 2024, during a meeting with a delegation from the Directorate General of Taxes (DGI) at the Ministry of Finance. The goal is to contribute to the 2025 state budget for Cameroon.
Ccima believes that risk management could offer a new fiscal opportunity for the state. The Chamber referred to the August 10, 1990 law on technical expertise, which requires using a certified expert to assess damages after an incident.
Tax experts from the Chamber have observed that damages are often ignored when determining the tax base. They note that the tax administration no longer relies on expert reports and instead makes arbitrary damage evaluations. For example, if CFA2 billion worth of imported fish is spoiled, a tax official might assess the loss at just CFA100 million, as allowed by Article 7 of the General Tax Code, according to a tax expert at Ccima.
Ccima argues that tax officials lack the expertise to properly assess damages. This should be left to certified technical experts, whose reports should be considered by tax authorities to ensure fair tax assessments.
