CAMEROON · SOVEREIGN DEBT
Key Facts
—The stock: FCFA 845.2 billion, about US$1.48 billion, in external loans the state contracted and on-lent to public enterprises at end-June 2026.
—The concentration: four companies hold FCFA 672.3 billion, about US$1.18 billion, or 79.5% of the total.
—The four: CAMTEL, CAMWATER, SONATREL and EDC — telecoms, water, electricity transmission and dam development.
—The largest single borrower: CAMTEL, on FCFA 230.4 billion or about US$404 million, some 27.3% of the stock, mostly the national broadband network and backbone extension.
—The spread: eleven public enterprises in total, financing 43 projects across telecoms, water, power, housing and agro-industry.
—The direction: down 3.7% year on year and 2.9% on end-May, but up FCFA 20.2 billion, or 2.4%, on end-March.
—The source: the Caisse autonome d’amortissement debt bulletin published 27 July 2026, reported by Investir au Cameroun on 31 July and Financial Afrik on 3 August 2026.
Four state companies carry 79.5% of Cameroon’s on-lent external debt. CAMTEL, CAMWATER, SONATREL and EDC together hold FCFA 672.3 billion of a FCFA 845.2 billion stock, worth about US$1.48 billion, according to the national debt agency’s bulletin of 27 July 2026.
What Cameroon’s on-lent external debt actually is
On-lending is a common but under-examined structure. The sovereign borrows abroad on its own signature, then passes the money to a state-owned company to spend on a project.
The company is meant to repay from its own revenue. The state remains the borrower of record to the lender.
That distinction is where the risk lives. If the utility cannot collect enough from customers, the obligation does not disappear — it simply returns to the treasury.
Cameroon’s figures let an outsider see exactly where that exposure sits. The debt agency, the Caisse autonome d’amortissement, publishes it monthly.
Four companies, four-fifths of the exposure
Eleven public enterprises share the FCFA 845.2 billion stock. Concentration is heavy: CAMTEL, CAMWATER, SONATREL and EDC hold FCFA 672.3 billion between them, or 79.5%.
CAMTEL, the state telecoms operator, is the single largest at FCFA 230.4 billion, roughly US$404 million. That is 27.3% of the whole stock, borrowed largely to build out the national broadband network and extend the fibre backbone.
Investir au Cameroun, which reported the bulletin first on 31 July, published the fuller breakdown. CAMWATER carries FCFA 194.9 billion, SONATREL FCFA 134.9 billion and EDC FCFA 112.1 billion — water supply, electricity transmission and hydroelectric development respectively.
On that reading CAMTEL and CAMWATER alone account for FCFA 425.3 billion, or 50.3% of the total. That is the two-company subset of the same concentration, not a rival figure.
Why the stock fell and rose at the same time
The direction of travel depends entirely on the comparison date. Against June 2025 the stock is down 3.7%, and against end-May 2026 it is down 2.9%.
Against end-March 2026, however, it is up FCFA 20.2 billion, or 2.4%, from about FCFA 825 billion. Both statements are true.
Three forces move the stock at once: scheduled amortisation reducing it, new disbursements adding to it, and exchange-rate movement revaluing what is already there.
That third factor is easy to overlook. Several of the loans are denominated in dollars, euros, yuan or special drawing rights, so a portion of every monthly change is simply currency translation.
The yuan tranche and what it signals
The currency mix is itself a piece of information. A stock denominated partly in yuan tells you which lenders financed which projects.
Chinese policy banks have been substantial funders of telecoms and power infrastructure across Central Africa. A telecoms operator carrying more than a quarter of the country’s on-lent debt fits that pattern.
The practical consequence is exchange-rate exposure. The CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a fixed 655.957, so euro-denominated loans carry no translation risk while dollar and yuan tranches do.
For a utility earning entirely in local currency, that mismatch is a real cost. It is one reason on-lent portfolios can deteriorate without any operational failure at all.
What to watch next
The first thing to track is repayment performance at the four large borrowers. Concentration is only a problem if the concentrated borrowers underperform.
The second is the pace of new disbursement against the 43 projects the stock finances. A portfolio that keeps drawing while amortising slowly does not shrink.
The third is regional. Cameroon is the largest economy in the CEMAC bloc, so its contingent liabilities are a reasonable proxy for where stress would surface first.
The bulletin does not go that far. It does not publish, company by company, what was actually repaid in the first half of 2026, what arrears are owed to the state, or what the treasury has had to cover.
So concentration is visible while repayment quality is not. Publishing the stock monthly is still more than many peers offer, and worth acknowledging even when the numbers are uncomfortable.
Frequently asked questions
How large is Cameroon’s on-lent external debt?
FCFA 845.2 billion, about US$1.48 billion, at end-June 2026. It finances 43 projects across eleven public enterprises.
Which companies hold most of it?
CAMTEL, CAMWATER, SONATREL and EDC hold FCFA 672.3 billion, or 79.5% of the stock. CAMTEL alone accounts for FCFA 230.4 billion, about 27.3%.
Is the debt stock rising or falling?
Both, depending on the comparison. It is down 3.7% year on year and 2.9% on end-May 2026, but up FCFA 20.2 billion or 2.4% against end-March 2026.
Why does on-lent debt carry risk for the state?
The state remains the borrower of record to the external lender even though a public company is meant to repay. If the company cannot pay from its own revenue, the obligation returns to the treasury.
What currencies is the debt denominated in?
Several of the loans are denominated in dollars, euros, yuan or special drawing rights, according to the bulletin’s own breakdown. Exchange-rate movement on those tranches is one of the three reasons the stock changes month to month.
Connected Coverage
Read more of our coverage from Central Africa, and the wider contest for the continent’s resources and infrastructure in Africa: The New Scramble.
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