(Business in Cameroon) – Cameroon’s Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze, told lawmakers on April 4 that the country’s digital income tax filing platform is now receiving more than 425,000 declarations every month. Since the system was launched in 2023, over 2 million individual taxpayers have used it to file their personal income taxes.
The platform brought in CFA15 billion in revenue in 2024. While that’s a solid result, it’s still CFA10 billion below what the tax administration had projected when the platform went live last year—a shortfall that puts the collection rate at about 60%.
“We can still do better,” the finance minister said, seeking to reassure parliament.
The digital declaration system is part of a broader reform that was introduced through the 2021 finance law. Under the new rules, individuals who earn income from salaries, pensions, annuities, or returns on investments or rental properties are required to file a yearly income summary with their local tax office by June 30 at the latest.
To give people more time to adjust to the new system, the finance ministry extended the deadline twice.
However, lawmakers raised concerns over the platform’s technical reliability. MP John Evaristus pointed out recurring access issues. The minister admitted the platform struggled at launch due to the high number of users.
“There was a lot of enthusiasm when the system was introduced, and it simply couldn’t handle the load. But we’ve put in backup systems that are working,” Motaze said. “We don’t think it was sabotage—it was just a new tool, and we’re still learning.”
