Cameroon export and investment slowdown

In July 2026, Cameroon’s state‑run Cameroon Development Corporation reported a sharp drop in banana shipments, falling to its lowest monthly volume of the year. The decline was attributed to a dry season that lowered yields and to the ongoing Anglophone crisis, which hampered access to plantations and limited supplies of inputs. Private exporters, largely subsidiaries of France’s Compagnie Fruitière, covered most of the shortfall.

Later in the same month, broader economic data showed that Cameroon’s foreign direct investment fell to $332 million in 2025 and that export earnings in early 2026 were down 23.6 % year‑on‑year. The contraction was most severe in cocoa, where revenues plunged amid a collapse in global cocoa prices, while oil and gas revenues also slipped despite higher international price benchmarks. Analysts linked the downturn to a weakening business climate, higher global interest rates, and a regional slowdown affecting several key sectors.

Together, the snapshots illustrate a widening economic slowdown in Cameroon, moving from sector‑specific challenges in banana production to a nationwide decline in investment inflows and export performance across multiple commodities.