By Boris Esono Nwenfor
BUEA, PAV – The government of Cameroon has announced fresh payments running into billions of CFA francs to teachers in state universities, as an indefinite strike declared by the National Union of Teachers of Higher Education (SYNES) continues to put pressure on the country’s higher education sector.
In a statement issued on 18 September, the Minister of State, Minister of Higher Education, Jacques Fame Ndongo, said the government had completed payment of FCFA 1.77bn, representing the outstanding balance of the special allowance for the modernisation of university research for the first quarter of 2026. The payment brings transfers for that quarter to about FCFA 4.86bn.
The ministry also announced the beginning of payments for the second quarter of 2026, with about FCFA 4.92bn being transferred to beneficiaries in accordance with the government’s expenditure programme and available treasury funds. The research allowance for the fourth quarter of 2025, amounting to about FCFA 5.48bn, had already been fully paid on 26 July, according to the ministry.
The latest payments come against the backdrop of a wider academic debt owed to lecturers in state universities. The ministry says FCFA 7.294bn has so far been paid against an academic debt of about FCFA 16.96bn, representing an apurement rate of 43%.
That leaves approximately FCFA 9.66bn still outstanding, with the ministry saying the remaining amount will be settled progressively according to the availability of state funds. The debt, accumulated between 2000 and 2021, has been a central issue in the dispute between the government and university lecturers.
SYNES declared an indefinite strike on 3 September, citing unpaid research allowances, outstanding academic debt and what it described as insufficient progress in resolving its grievances.
Government and SYNES representatives have held talks in an attempt to resolve the dispute, but the union has continued to press for payment of outstanding obligations. Recent discussions have focused on the research modernisation allowance, academic debt and broader working conditions for university teachers.
The latest government announcement therefore represents a significant movement of funds, but it does not clear the entire academic debt. Fame Ndongo has called on university lecturers to demonstrate maturity and allow academic activities to continue in a peaceful environment.
The ministry has also indicated that payments to lecturers whose allowances are made through the billetage system will begin from 23 September. For the government, the latest disbursements are part of a continuing effort to settle outstanding obligations. For SYNES, however, the central question remains whether the payments announced are sufficient to resolve the wider grievances behind the strike.
