By Boris Esono Nwenfor
BUEA, Cameroon – The City Mayor of Kumba, Cameroon’s economic hub in the South West Region, has called for a shift from raw material exports to local transformation and value addition — particularly in the cocoa, wood, and fish sectors. He was speaking on Day 1 of the third edition of the Council’s International Economic Forum, JEICOM 2025 currently taking place in Yaoundé.
Speaking to journalists, Mayor Gregory Mewanu highlighted Kumba’s untapped economic potential, stressing the need to rethink how the town’s natural resources are used to create jobs, boost the local economy, and reduce dependency on imports.
“Kumba has the privilege of producing close to 50-55% of the cocoa that comes from Cameroon. I always plead for, why don’t we go further? We shouldn’t only plant harvest, and sell cocoa in bean form. We should go further to transform the cocoa, the beans that we produce, which means we bring the industries to Kumba,” Gregory Mewanu said.
He further emphasized that as Kumba is situated within Cameroon’s dense rainforest, the city has access to abundant timber and freshwater fish – yet it still imports these resources.
Mewanu said: “Why don’t we transform wood? We shouldn’t be importing wood. We should not be importing fish. We should produce fish. What’s happening with the Lake Barombi in Kumba? It’s a huge lake, having a stretch of many kilometres. We should do fish farming in Kumba. The popular Kumba water, don’t forget. We should use that.”
The JEICOM 2025 Forum, short for Council’s International Economic Forum, is organized by the United Councils and Cities of Cameroon (CVUC) in collaboration with the Special Council Support Fund for Mutual Assistance (FEICOM). The event brings together government officials, local council representatives, business leaders, and development partners to explore sustainable economic models for local development.
Now in its third edition, JEICOM 2025 aims to foster partnerships and innovative approaches to municipal development. It provides a platform for councils to showcase investment opportunities and success stories in their communities.
Kumba’s presentation focused on agro-industrial potential, forestry, and fisheries, calling on investors and development actors to support local initiatives that align with the principles of sustainability and community empowerment.
Mayor Mewanu concluded his remarks with a passionate appeal to fellow mayors. He said: “I urge every mayor to look into his, or her own territory, and see what economic potentials are there. Come up with projects. Come, you should come. Get, of course, technical partners, and of course, the financial partners, to sponsor the projects in our respective localities.”
