Central Africa’s $35.6 Billion Funding Gap Threatens Growth Ambitions

The economic outlook, presented at the Bank of Central African States headquarters in Yaoundé, highlights a persistent tension: rising productivity projections are being stifled by heavy debt servicing and limited tax revenues. In 2025, regional governments spent roughly one-third of their public revenue just on servicing existing debt. Cameroon, while maintaining a sustainable debt-to-GDP ratio of 39.4%, illustrates the broader struggle, with debt obligations consuming 40.1% of its tax receipts. These fiscal pressures leave little room for the infrastructure and business development needed to translate growth into tangible public benefits.

To address this, officials are targeting three strategic pillars: sovereign resource mobilization, diaspora capital, and deep financial reform. Gabon’s recent recovery of $270 million from mining and oil restoration funds serves as a blueprint for the region. Simultaneously, policymakers are pushing to channel the billions in annual diaspora remittances into productive assets through infrastructure-backed bonds. Success hinges on institutional upgrades, such as revitalizing the Central African Stock Exchange and reducing the reliance of commercial banks on government debt. For countries like Cameroon, the path forward involves formalizing the informal sector and expanding public-private partnerships to ensure that capital flows into projects that actually impact local communities.