Cameroon’s Acting Minister of Mines, Industry and Technological Development, Prof. Fuh Calistus Gentry, has announced that the country will be hosting two major global events in May. The upcoming events are the fourth edition of the International Convention of Mines and Exhibitions of Cameroon, CIMEC and the Council of Ministers of the Countries of the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, OACPS.
Acting Minister of Mines speaking to the press
Minister Fuh Calistus made this announcement during a press conference that was held in the conference room of the Ministry of Mines on Tbursday February 15. The Minister in his preliminary address explained that these upcoming events to hold from May 22-24, will be a major avenue for the country to showcase its rich potentials in the mining industry.
He furthered that the fourth edition of CIMEC, that will bring together a group of national and international investors has three main objectives; to present Cameroon’s new status as a mining-producing country, to make Yaounde a new center for negotiating financing for mining projects and to emphasize the opportunities available in the cameroonian mining sector.
It is hoped that the fourth edition of CIMEC will make Cameroon a platform for international exchange and negotiation in the mining sector, similar to Indaba in South Africa and PDAC in Toronto, Canada. To this effect, the convention has as theme “Transition from Geological Potential to Production of Mining Deposits as a Means to Strengthen Economic Growth in the Sub-region.”
Fuh Calistus equally added that the Council of Ministers of the OACPS in Cameroon aims to study the report and recommendations formulated during the meeting of OACPS experts on critical minerals needed for energy transition that was held in Lusaka, Zambia. This is in a bid to produce a document outlining the position and options of the OACPS in response to the European Union’s (EU) proposed regulation ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials.
In 2023, four mining projects effectively started in Cameroon: the iron ore projects of Mbalam, Kribi-Lobe, and Bipindi Grand-Zambi, with their first commercial productions expected this year, meanwhile the gold mine project of Colomine is already in production. The Minister also stated that eleven (11) other mining projects classified as short, medium, and long-term will undergo restructuring for their effective start as soon as possible.
By Sandrine Moma
