African Business
Climate Survey and the Cameroon Business Forum with the Institutional support
of strategic and sectoral ministries concerned have elaborated and presented a
‘support programme for the appropriation of the OHADA Law by English speaking
judicial and extra judicial actors in Cameroon’.
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| Ntumfor Barrister Nico Halle moderating at Workshop |
This move comes against
a backdrop of recent developments portraying Cameroon in the International
scene as an arena where insecurity reigns due to recurrent social re-vindications.
‘The origin of these tensions which has degenerated into social disorder in the
South and North West regions has its roots in a movement that started on the 8th
of November 2016 by English speaking Cameroonian Lawyers.’
According to a document
presented by ABCS, public authorities deemed the complaints presented by the
Lawyers as legitimate and thus ‘the Permanent Secretary of OHADA completed and
published an updated English version of the Uniformed Acts and treaties of OHADA
on the 24th of November 2016. Following suit, Her Excellency Dorothe
Cossi Sossa presented the final consigned result of the special edition of the
OHADA official gazette to the Minister Secretary General at the Presidency of
the Republic of Cameroon, Mr. Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh representing the President of
the Republic of Cameroon, His Excellency president Paul Biya.’
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| Dr. Justine Diffo of 'More Women in Politics Fame' addresses participants at Seminar |
This programme it was
disclosed is aimed at facilitating the integration of the translated OHADA text
in the day to day practice of targeted actors in the regions concerned and to
accompany a better and functional access to justice leading to an efficient and
competitive business climate.
This awareness raising
workshop was also organised within the perspective of starting the OHADA Business
School training sessions in March 2017 with the support of the Ministry of
Finance.
President of the
General Assembly of the Cameroon Bar Association Ntumfor Barrister Nico Halle
speaking as moderator during the workshop called for a minute of silence for
Cameroonians who’ve died since the unrests began in the Southwest and Northwest
Regions and for Cameroonian soldiers who have died fighting against Boko Haram.
Ntumfor Nico Halle Said most failures in our efforts to solve problems come
about because we don’t put God in the heart of things and hardly ever say the
truth. For Cameroon to emerge he said, we needed to implant the rule of Law. He
said he came to the workshop simply because he wanted to be sure what was being
done was well done.
The moderator said
Cameroonians needed a change of attitude and that those organizing conferences
needed to do things seriously without politicizing them. The good initiative
being carried out by ABCS among others should not be politicized if it had to
succeed he said.
The Founder cum Chair
Person of the Board of Administration of the African Business Climate Survey ABCS
Professor Justine Diffo Tchunkam said ABCS plan to work with expertise created
within the 17 member countries in collaboration with experts from outside.
Among other things she said ABCS was created in 2013 to conduct surveys and
monitor analyses on business practices in the 17 OHADA member states. Among the
achievements of ABCS she mentioned the reduction of the minimum of capital of
Public Limited Companies in Cameroon. She further said expertise will be
sourced from both Cameroonian cultures with an intention of pushing Lawyers of
the French expression to also master the English Common Law system which is
appropriate for the Bilingual landscape of Cameroon. The workshop she further
said was aimed at measuring of the OHADA in a very competitive Business
Landscape.
Participants were made
up of Lawyers from the Northwest and Southwest Regions, representatives from
Banking sector and a cross section of the business sector in Cameroon.
