Cameroon’s Economy Minister, Alamine Ousmane Mey, signed financing agreements worth 111.6 billion CFA francs on February 13, 2026, with three foreign banks—Belgium’s ING Bank and Belfius Bank, each contributing 39.36 billion CFA francs, and Deutsche Bank Italy providing 25.27 billion CFA francs. The funds will support the Yaoundé Drinking Water Supply System Reconfiguration Project, which builds on the Sanaga River (Paepys) project inaugurated in 2024. The original Paepys project included a water treatment plant at Batschenga with an initial capacity of 300,000 cubic metres per day, expandable to 400,000 cubic metres.
Despite these gains, existing infrastructure is insufficient to meet Yaoundé’s water demand. The Akomnyada plant currently produces 100,000 cubic metres per day against an estimated demand of 315,000 cubic metres. While Paepys is expected to supply the 215,000-cubic-metre shortfall, the current distribution network limits access to some neighbourhoods, making a comprehensive network overhaul necessary to integrate the new supply and increased volumes.
The project aims to integrate an additional 285,000 cubic metres per day from Paepys into the city’s water network and expand piped drinking water coverage in Greater Yaoundé, including Soa and Mbankomo, from 40% to 61% by adding 30,000 new household connections. Beyond increasing coverage, the project will boost network efficiency from 50% to 71%, expand storage capacity from 100,310 cubic metres to 122,810 cubic metres, and extend the main, secondary, and tertiary networks with 525 kilometres of new pipelines.
Minister Mey emphasized that the project will strengthen access to basic services and support Cameroon’s efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6, which focuses on universal access to water and sanitation and the sustainable management of water resources. The agreements were signed as Yaoundé hosted the 23rd congress of the African Water and Sanitation Association (AAEA), where participants highlighted the challenges of meeting SDG 6 by 2030. Officials noted that over 30% of Cameroonians still lack access to safe drinking water, underscoring the importance of the ongoing water infrastructure upgrades.
