Cameroon: Industrial Production Records 12.9 Percent Growth

Source from:  Cameroon Tribune (Yaoundé) 26 August 2008 08/27/2008

Cameroon's industrial sector has registered an increase production of 4.6 percent during 2007, GICAM quarterly Bulletin has said. The report published recently in Douala attributes the increase to the high demand for manufactured goods which pushed manufacturing industries to produce more. According to the bulletin, there was equally an increase in the demand for petroleum products. In all, industrial activities in 2007 registered a growth rate of 12.9 percent up from 8.3 the year before, the Douala based bulleting of the Cameroon Association of Businessmen (Groupement Patronat du Cameroun-GICAM) said. The turnover for industries progressed from 7.3 percent in 2006 to 7.9 percent in 2007. The Economic and Financial Report for 2007 on its part stated inter alia that Cameroon's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) could jump to 4.1percent in 2008 up from 2.9 percent the previous year. All things remaining equal, manufacturing industries are expected to contribute 2.4 percent to the GDP against 2.1percent in 2007, GICAM report said. Chemical industries contributed 37.6 percent to the country's industrial production in 2007, followed by food processing industries with 29.1ppercent and textile industries, 28.7 percent. In spite of the increase in production, the industrial sector has stagnated in job creation. Employment intake for the past years has remained at 51,000 people with the chemical industries, textile, beverage and tobacco industries reducing staff, the bulletin stated, underscoring that the country's agro-industry continued to experience a downward trend in activities. The sub sectors most hit are palm oil, rubber, cotton and sugar. Banana production dropped from 256,363 metric tons in 2006 to 232,725 metric tons in 2007, while production for the first five months of 2008 stands at 106,200 metric tons showing a 10 percent increase compared to the same period in 2007. Enditem