IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde visits Cameroon

YAOUNDE, Cameroon

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde on Thursday started a three day official visit to Cameroon.

The visit is part of a six day African tour that began in Nigeria on Monday.

Her visit comes at a moment that the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (Communaute Economique et Monetaire des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale or CEMAC) economies face two major problems: the decrease in commodities prices and security threats caused by Boko Haram in the Lake Chad region.

These setbacks slowed down the region’s economic growth last year.

“The country [Cameroon] and the entire CEMAC region are confronted with the twin shocks of the oil-price slump and a surge in disruptions related to security,” Lagarde said in a statement on Monday.

While in Yaounde, Lagarde will meet President Paul Biya, the Minister of Finance, Alamine Ousmane Mey, the Prime Minister Philemon Yang and also CEMAC Finance Ministers.

Lagarde is also expected to meet with business women.

CEMAC includes Cameroon, Central Africa, Congo - Brazzaville, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and Chad.

The growth of the CEMAC zone decreased by 2.5 points in 2015, reaching 2.4 percent, down from 4.9 percent in 2014, according to latest figures from the Bank of Central African States.

In its report on Cameroon published on Dec. 3, the IMF expressed concern about Cameroon’s future growth: "Economic outlook has worsened and proximate risks have become more dominant. As a result of projected financing gaps and a surge in public infrastructure investment, public debt is expected to increase rapidly," the report said.