Prime Minister, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute, on Thursday, officially inaugurated the clinker processing and cement production factory in Figuil, Mayo Louti Division.
During the event, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute noted that the achievement marks a major step in the country’s industrialisation drive, spearheaded by President Paul Biya.
“This is a very important factory. It is one of its kind in Cameroon, because it produces clinker, which is a fundamental product if you have to produce cement,” Dion Ngute said.
The factory, a venture of Cimenteries du Cameroun, CIMENCAM, costs an investment of over 60 billion FCFA and is expected to have a profound impact on the local economy, authorities said.
After visiting the entire structure, Dr. Dion Ngute revealed that the Figuil cement plant will significantly boost local production, reducing the country’s reliance on imports and retaining capital for growth.
According to the Prime Minister, the facility will produce approximately 500,000 tonnes of cement per year, catering to the needs of the population of the Northern regions and beyond, including Chad and the Central African Republic.
The CIMENCAM Managing Director, Xavier Legrand, emphasized that the new facility is more productive than the old one, with a capacity to produce 500,000 tonnes of cement per year. Xavier noted that this increased production capacity will not only meet local demand but also position Cameroon as a major cement supplier in the CEMAC subregion.
As the new factory goes operational, there is hope that it will address the challenges of access to cement in the Far North, North, and Adamawa regions, thereby supporting infrastructural development and boosting economic growth, even with neighbouring countries.
