Ministers green-light a larger 2026 envelope
The forty-fourth ordinary session of the Council of Ministers of the Central African Economic Union (UEAC) closed in Brazzaville with a unanimous vote for a 2026 consolidated budget of 85 923 690 256 CFA francs, up 2.42 % on 2025 (Official communiqué, 31 Oct 2025).
Chairing the session, Congo’s Minister of Economy Ludovic Ngatsé framed the increase as a calibrated response to post-pandemic pressures and infrastructure gaps while stressing prudent spending and measurable impact.
Commission President Baltasar Engonga Edjo’o underlined that the envelope reconciles rising security, health and climate priorities with persistent calls from partners for leaner administration (BEAC 2024 macro outlook).
Transparency and audit drive investor confidence
A new standing audit committee will monitor implementation of internal auditor recommendations, with Gabon tasked to propose its structure at the next extraordinary meeting.
Ngatsé reminded delegates that regular, consolidated reports from financial controllers will now be mandatory, adding that “robust oversight is inseparable from fresh capital inflows”.
Observers note that multilaterals have repeatedly linked concessionary windows to governance benchmarks; aligning procedures therefore opens the door to cheaper project finance (African Development Bank governance brief 2024).
Autonomous tax collection moves ahead
Ministers urged member states to operationalise the additional act establishing an autonomous collection mechanism for the Community Integration Tax, a levy that funds common institutions.
The Commission will dispatch mixed missions to customs services to verify that directives from the 43rd session are translated into automated remittances.
According to the final communiqué, consistent TCI flows remain the “indispensable backbone” of the monetary union, enabling predictable budgeting without recurrent advances from the regional central bank.
From FODEC to regional investment fund
The session took note of the management report on the Development and Financing Fund for the Community (FODEC) and reaffirmed the principle of converting it into a fully-fledged investment fund.
Transforming FODEC’s window from subsidy-based support to return-seeking equity will, officials argue, attract co-investors and multiply the impact of each CFA franc mobilised.
Legal drafts are expected before mid-2026, with ministers stressing that governance rules must mirror international best practice to reassure private partners.
Ebibeyin dry port: studies due by mid-2026
The Commission must finalise technical and environmental studies for the Ebibeyin dry port in Equatorial Guinea during the first half of 2026, setting aside budget lines for construction the same year.
The inland facility is designed to decongest coastal terminals and shorten transit times to landlocked Chad and Central African Republic, supporting the region’s drive toward a functional single market.
Industry groups welcomed the timeline, citing mounting logistics costs that can reach 40 % of the landed value of consumer goods, well above the continental average (CEMAC shippers council estimate).
Maintaining the ban on unprocessed logs
Reiterating a previous decision, the Council confirmed the prohibition of raw log exports from the Congo Basin, a measure aimed at fostering local processing and higher value-added jobs.
Ngatsé called the ban “both an industrial and a climate policy,” hinting at synergies with emerging carbon-credit schemes that reward sustainable forestry.
Timber operators requested clearer enforcement guidelines to avoid border-post discrepancies that could undermine competitiveness within the bloc.
Debt clearance and partner relations
Ministers applauded progress in settling arrears owed to development partners and internal suppliers, noting that the Commission closed 2025 with a lower stock of unpaid invoices than at any point since 2018.
Reduced debt overhang is expected to boost the community’s credit standing and free room in the 2026 envelope for priority infrastructure.
A BEAC representative said the central bank stands ready to support cash-flow smoothing through standard facilities but encouraged strict adherence to expenditure ceilings.
Private sector voices and civil society input
In a departure from previous meetings, the Council invited representatives from chambers of commerce and civil society to deliver short interventions.
Speakers urged acceleration of payments for cross-border road works and harmonisation of phytosanitary standards to cut clearance delays for agrifood cargoes.
The chair pledged that future sessions will systematically integrate stakeholder feedback, arguing that “an integration agenda cannot be purely technocratic”.
Regional integration context
Created in 1994 to replace UDEAC, CEMAC groups Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic and Chad under a customs union and a single currency managed by BEAC.
Despite common tariffs and a shared franc pegged to the euro, intra-community trade hovers below 7 % of total commerce, pointing to persistent structural hurdles (CEMAC statistics bulletin 2025).
The 2026 budget therefore allocates additional resources to corridor maintenance and trade facilitation units inside national ministries.
Convergence with continental frameworks
Officials highlighted the need to align CEMAC’s programmes with the African Continental Free Trade Area to avoid duplication and to position Central Africa as a coherent investment destination.
Work is ongoing to update rules of origin, with a progress report slated for the next ministerial cycle.
Experts argue that synchronised standards could unlock scale advantages for industries spanning Cameroon’s garment clusters to Congo’s wood processing platforms.
Macro-economic backdrop
BEAC projections show CEMAC real GDP growth edging to 3.7 % in 2026, supported by resilient energy production and a gradual rebound in services.
Inflation is expected to fall within the 3 % convergence threshold, facilitating the central bank’s cautious monetary stance.
The Council’s endorsement of a balanced, programme-based budget is framed as complementary to these favourable trends, aiming to safeguard macro stability while financing social spending.
Harnessing digital tools for budget execution
The Commission is accelerating deployment of an integrated financial management information system to track commitments in real time.
Pilots in Congo and Cameroon reduced average payment lags by 15 days, according to internal dashboards presented to ministers.
Scaling the platform across all six administrations could provide investors and donors with monthly performance snapshots, a practice common in larger emerging markets.
Climate and resilience financing
Beyond forestry measures, the 2026 plan earmarks funds for a feasibility assessment of a regional catastrophe-risk pool, echoing similar schemes in West Africa.
Structuring such an instrument would help member states absorb climate shocks without derailing fiscal targets.
Development partners signalled interest, but insisted on transparent premium calculations anchored in actuarial data.
Call to action from the chair
Closing the session, Ngatsé issued what he termed a “pressing appeal” to governments, the private sector and civil society to turn resolutions into palpable benefits for citizens.
He argued that faster integration will stem illicit trade, widen tax bases and improve employment prospects for youth, who now represent over 60 % of the region’s population.
Stakeholders left Brazzaville with a roadmap, timelines and a shared understanding that credibility lies in execution, not communiqués.
Implications for investors
Analysts say the combination of tighter audits, autonomous tax collection and a pivot toward investment-grade governance sends a reassuring signal to portfolio and direct investors alike.
Yet they caution that material gains hinge on swift national transposition of community acts, especially customs and procurement reforms.
For now, the upward budget revision, though modest, underscores a region prepared to match ambition with resources.
Outlook for the 2026 ministerial review
The Council agreed to reconvene in extraordinary session once audit manuals are ready, likely before the third quarter of 2026.
By then, progress on TCI automation, FODEC transformation and the Ebibeyin dry port will serve as litmus tests for the union’s capacity to deliver.
Success could mark a decisive step toward the fully integrated, investor-friendly Central Africa envisaged when CEMAC was founded three decades ago.
