(Business in Cameroon) – During a visit on June 9 to the construction site of a life center in Garoua-Boulaï—a town located over 200 kilometers north of Bertoua, the capital of the East Region—the Director General of the National Shippers’ Council of Cameroon (CNCC) observed that the facility is still not ready for delivery. According to the agency, the project commenced in September 2022 and is now over 90% complete.
However, at the official launch of construction on September 30, 2022, CNCC Director General Auguste Mbappé Penda said: “The CNCC life center in Garoua-Boulaï will be operational before the end of the first half of 2023,” according to the official account of the groundbreaking ceremony. Nearly two years later, the facility remains unfinished.
The project itself is relatively modest in scale. It encompasses the construction of a truck park with a 200-vehicle capacity, along with accommodation rooms, a prayer hall, a restaurant, and an administrative block. The complex is designed to be powered by a borehole and a generator, providing users with basic comforts.
“The CNCC life center in Garoua-Boulaï, spanning more than two hectares, will enhance the appeal of Cameroonian ports in Central Africa,” the CNCC chief reiterated during his visit, accompanied by the Governor of the East Region, Grégoire Mvongo. The agency, however, has not disclosed the reasons behind the delay.
As a reminder, the CNCC’s primary mission is to support and protect the interests of shippers across the entire logistics chain to promote international trade. In addition to the Garoua-Boulaï facility, CNCC already operates life centers in Dibamba (at the eastern exit of Douala) and Ngoulentang, and has a logistics base under construction in Kousseri.
L.A.
