Cameroon’s development funding: afd’s strategic allocation examined

With an active portfolio exceeding 622.8 billion FCFA spread across 51 projects, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) stands as Cameroon’s foremost bilateral donor. Yet, beneath this impressive financial commitment, a closer look at its 2025 sectoral allocations reveals choices that warrant scrutiny: a significant 44.2% of funds are channeled into infrastructure and urban development, contrasting sharply with a mere 1.7% dedicated to agriculture and food security – precisely the sector Yaoundé has placed at the core of its import-substitution strategy.

The figures speak volumes. As of December 31, 2024, the AFD group’s portfolio in Cameroon reached over 594 billion FCFA, representing the largest share of the approximately 1705.4 billion FCFA committed across Central Africa. By 2025, this volume further expanded to roughly 622.8 billion FCFA, distributed among 51 projects. Of these, 47 are managed directly by AFD, while four fall under Expertise France, according to the group’s activity report. The breakdown among the three entities is clear: AFD accounts for 574.4 billion FCFA, Proparco (its private sector subsidiary) for 40.5 billion FCFA, and Expertise France for over 7.8 billion FCFA.

However, this aggregate sum doesn’t reveal the crucial sectoral distribution, which provides deeper insights. In 2025, infrastructure and urban development absorbed 44.2% of the group’s commitments. Funding for private financial institutions followed, taking 35.9%. Governance received 6.8%, and education, training, and employment secured 6.4%. At the opposite end of the spectrum, agriculture and food security garnered only 1.7%, water and sanitation 2.2%, and the productive sector 2.9%.

infrastructure: a deliberate choice rooted in history

The pronounced focus on infrastructure is not coincidental; it reflects a long-standing logic and addresses genuine needs. AFD has maintained a presence in Cameroon since 1960, and the nation has historically been one of the primary beneficiaries of its funding in Africa, with annual commitments averaging nearly 150 billion FCFA since 2002. The flagship project of 2025 perfectly exemplifies this strategic direction.

On January 21, five financing agreements totaling 175.5 million euros were signed at the Ministry of Economy. The most substantial of these concerned the Douala and Yaoundé Flood Control Program (PLIDY), backed by a sovereign loan of 150 million euros. This initiative aims to tackle the recurrent flooding that plagues Cameroon’s two major cities, striving to permanently reduce the vulnerability of both populations and infrastructure. This single project alone represents nearly five times the entire three-year budget the Cameroonian government recently allocated to revitalizing its wheat sector. AFD also supported the Regional Capitals program, financed via the C2D, which seeks to modernize urban infrastructure in five secondary cities, alongside the Sporcap initiative for enhancing access to sports facilities.

agriculture remains on the periphery

Here, the contrast is striking. The Cameroonian government has positioned food sovereignty as a cornerstone of its National Development Strategy 2020-2030 (SND30). The Integrated Agro-Pastoral and Fisheries Import-Substitution Plan (PIISAH) 2024-2026 has earmarked 1,500 billion FCFA to lessen reliance on imported rice, wheat, palm oil, and other essential commodities. Against this backdrop, AFD’s 1.7% commitment to agriculture and food security in 2025 raises significant questions.

This minimal allocation stands in stark contrast to the institution’s activities in other nations. Between 2018 and 2024, Proparco doubled its annual financing in Africa, mobilizing over 7.6 billion euros—approximately 1.2 billion per year—specifically for infrastructure, agriculture, food security, financial systems, and essential services. These continent-wide priorities do not appear to translate with the same intensity into the Cameroonian portfolio. Despite this, robust precedents exist. AFD has supported 8,000 productive projects in Cameroon through the ACEFA program, impacting 260,000 agricultural holdings and funding micro-projects in cereals, livestock, agro-processing, and commercialization. The program’s consolidation phase now targets one million Cameroonian agricultural holdings by 2035, recognizing that these two million family farms account for nearly 80% of national agricultural production. Such achievements exist, but their budgetary weight in the 2025 portfolio remains marginal compared to the large-scale urban projects.

sovereign loans at the heart of the strategy

The distribution by financial instrument illuminates another aspect of the portfolio. In 2025, sovereign loans constituted 33.9% of commitments, followed by senior loans at 23.2%, C2D at 16.2%, and guarantees at 12.6%. Grants—a non-reimbursable tool inherently best suited for direct social impact projects without immediate financial returns, such as in agriculture—accounted for only 6.3% of the total. This financial architecture has its own logic. Major infrastructure projects naturally lend themselves to sovereign loans because they generate tangible assets that can secure repayment. Agricultural projects, conversely, often involve dispersed populations, uncertain yields, and long return horizons—conditions less compatible with traditional debt instruments. The low proportion of grants in the portfolio may therefore partially explain the relative underfunding of the agricultural sector. Across Central Africa, during the review period, 64% of AFD’s commitments were dedicated to infrastructure and development projects. Cameroon, as the primary regional recipient, faithfully mirrors this continental orientation. Does Yaoundé actively choose this distribution, or is it a consequence of negotiations with its donor? The question warrants consideration.

snd30 and afd: two strategies seeking alignment

The SND30 sets precise targets for structural transformation, including reducing food imports, developing agro-industry, and creating local added value. However, the logic of a donor whose primary instruments are sovereign loans tends to favor high-visibility urban projects—roads, drainage, equipment—rather than agricultural value chains that require years of diffuse support before producing measurable results.