(Ecofin Agency) - In Cameroon, current local supply in cement is estimated to about 5 million tons (Production and Imports) for a national demand of 3 million tons thus implying a significant gap between supply and demand for this commodity. This mainly resulted from the establishment of two new cement plants in the country (Dangote and Cimaf) which ended the half-century reign of Lafarge over the market.

However, cement prices in Cameroon, despite the increasing supply, still align to those of 2010 (4,800 FCFA) with a slight variation of around 100 Francs CFA on the 50 Kg bag. Recently meeting with operators from the construction materials sector, Minister of Trade Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana asked them about this strange occurrence but also about that relating to supply and demand.

After getting few answers from the producers present, producers who played the “factory prices” card to remain silent, Minister Mbarga Atangana expressed his own point of view saying : “You seem to be playing a game with the cement price we, the government, can no more tolerate. Obviously you have arranged to impose us a fixed price. We will have to review all that.”

Ministry of Trade revealed that a 10-days study will be conducted to determine who, from the producers, distributors or hardware stores’ managers prevents cement’s price from decreasing, and shortened the euphoria at consumers’ side following the arrival of new producers on Cameroon’s cement market.

In relation to these producers, it must be reminded that all agreement between two or more companies to suppress competition is illegal according to the law from 14 July 1998 in relation to competition. Since May 2005, a national commission for competition has in fact been created to punish all actions impairing competition between companies.

This structure itself resulted from the law on competition from 14 July 1998, which states in its 27th article that all illegal agreements “are punishable by a fine of 50% of profit made following the agreement or 20% of total revenue on the Cameroonian market of the year preceding that during which the offence was committed”.

Brice R. Mbodiam