(Business in Cameroon) – Last year, Cameroon lost CFA 114.03 billion to corruption. According to the 2023 report on the fight against corruption, presented on September 26, this figure is CFA 109.4 billion (2,378.3%) higher than the CFA 4.6 billion reported in 2022. This represents the worst loss in the past five years, following losses of CFA 10.2 billion in 2019, CFA 17 billion in 2020, and CFA 43.9 billion in 2021.
These findings come from 16 investigation missions conducted by the National Anti-Graft Commission (CONAC) and monetary penalties resulting from 43 decisions made by the Budgetary and Financial Discipline Council (CDBF) of the State Superior Control (CONSUIPE) and the Special Criminal Court (TCS). Dieudonné Massi Gams, the president of CONAC, noted that the CDBF issued 20 decisions concerning officials and former officials from six organizations, including the National Social Insurance Fund (CNPS) and the Cameroon Real Estate Company (SIC). Some of these officials were held liable for a total of CFA 6.1 billion.
On the other hand, the total amount of damages awarded to the state stands at CFA 38.5 billion. The report also shows that the Debt Recovery Company (SRC) managed to recover CFA 8.5 billion. This includes CFA 7 billion related to court decisions on embezzlement of public assets and CFA 1.5 billion in restitutions recorded by the TCS.
In addition, the report recorded 7,588 denunciations in 2023, compared to 7,061 the previous year, reflecting an increase of 487 reports. These complaints were submitted electronically and via administrative mail. According to the Corruption Perception Index published in January 2024 by Transparency International (TI), Cameroon improved its ranking by two places compared to 2022, now standing as the 34th most corrupt country in Africa (140th worldwide) in 2023. In the CEMAC region, the country ranks second, just behind Gabon.
