Cameroon launched an agricultural transformation compact on 21 October 2026 that estimates $1.87 billion of investment will be required through 2030 to develop eight value chains, create jobs and reduce the country’s dependence on food imports.
The AgriConnect plan aims to cut the annual food import bill by 28%, from about $1.6 billion to $1.15 billion. It covers maize, rice, cassava, oil palm, cocoa, soybeans, dairy, fisheries and aquaculture.
Targets for 2030 include annual maize output of 6 million tonnes, palm oil production of 800,000 tonnes, a 55% rice self-sufficiency rate and domestic milk production covering 60% of demand. Fisheries and aquaculture output is expected to reach 450,530 tonnes.
The compact brings together 24 interventions covering seeds, mechanisation, irrigation, rural infrastructure, storage, processing, cold chains, land tenure and access to finance. Its governance includes three Cameroonian ministries, the World Bank Group, IFAD, the private sector and producer organisations.
The agrifood sector accounts for about 17% of Cameroon’s gross domestic product and 42% of employment, or around 4.7 million workers, according to IFAD. Limited access to inputs, infrastructure, technology, markets and credit continues to constrain productivity.
Actual capital mobilisation will be decisive. Sika Finance reports that the previous 2024-2026 import-substitution programme had raised only 110 billion CFA francs against estimated needs of 1.443 trillion, or 7.6%, while imports of the targeted products increased 15% in 2025.
The $1.87 billion envelope measures the compact’s investment needs over five years. The published documents do not present it as financing already raised or as a World Bank or IFAD disbursement.