Cameroon:RUMPI Budgets FCFA 8.5 Billion For 2009

Now Targets Core Projects for Realization

By Christopher Ambe Shu

With just two years left for the FCFA 17 billion Rumpi Project -placed under the Southwest Development Authority, SOWEDA-Buea to phase out, only about 40% of its global work plan has so far been achieved, it emerged at the project’s 7th Steering Committee meeting that held last November 12,in Trinity Hotel, Limbe.

( Picture Above: Ogork Ntui Besong,RUMPI Coordinator

Picture Below: Steering Committee at 7 th Session)

But with FCFA 8.5 billion voted at the 7th Steering Committee as RUMPI’s 2009 budget core projects such as rural roads, markets, water schemes and rural banks have now been earmarked for realization beginning next year.

Biloa Gatien, inspector-general in the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MINADER) who sat in for his minister, chaired the Steering Committee meeting, which was principally to examine and adopt the 2009 budget as well as its work plan.

He urged Rumpi administrators and its executing agencies to show total duty-consciousness and commitment, adding that the Cameroon Government attaches much importance to the project, with regards to its fight for poverty-alleviation.

The Rumpi Project, which has a six-year life span, was launched in 2004.It is intended to reduce poverty in rural areas of the Southwest province by increasing their incomes in a sustainable manner, through improving agricultural output as well as their socio-economic environment

The FCFA 17 billion Rumpi Project is co- funded by African Development Bank (ADB75%), Technical Assistance Fund (TAF 8 %), Government of Cameroon (GOC15%) and the beneficiaries (2%), according to the project’s documents.

“The 2009 budget is big but achievable. We are ready for serious work. With the African Development Bank (ADB) before you spend one Franc they must approve it. If they don’t, you can’t spend it”, Ogork Ntui Besong, coordinator of Rumpi told reporters, hoping that all work analyses already submitted to the ADB would be quickly endorsed.

The Project Coordinator said they are focusing on infrastructure development.
“We are presently building twenty (20) rural markets through out the province… We have awarded contracts for the construction of Twenty-two (22) village banks; we have also awarded contracts for the supply of Fifty-Five (55) saves, to arrive early January next year to enable us start rural banking,” noted Ogork Ntui

He said a partial beak-down of the budget of 8.5 billion for 2009 indicates that, FCFA 3.03 billion will go for road construction; FCFA 980 million for 34 water schemes and FCFA 422 million to complete payment for rural markets. He disclosed that RUMPI intends to improve upon 237 km of roads in the Southwest Province beginning next January.

In the past, the project had done quite a lot in terms of supporting agricultural activities and farmers in the province

The Project Coordinator said if by the end of 2009 RUMPI realized all earmarked projects it would have achieved about 80% of its goals.




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