Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Cameroon Public Disclosure Authorized City Competitiveness Diagnostic The World Bank Group Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Global Practice Public Disclosure Authorized June, 2018 Disclaimer This volume is a product of the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/ The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. Copyright Statement . The material in this publication is copyrighted. 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All other queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA, fax 202-522-2422, e-mail [email protected]. 2 Acknowledgements The report forms part of the Non-Lending Technical Assistance Project on the Economic Performance of African Cities, which aims to support the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Regional Development, the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing and the communautés urbaines of Cameroon in their efforts to promote urban competitiveness. Cameroon is one of four African countries covered by the project. The task team at the World Bank was led by Emma Wadie Hobson (TTL, Urban Specialist, GSURR1) and Megha Mukim (Co- TTL, Senior Economist, GSURR), under the leadership of Somik V. Lall (Global Lead for Territorial and Spatial Development, GSURR), Sylvie Debomy (Lead Urban Development Specialist, GSURR) and Meskerem Brhane (Practice Manager, GSURR). The primary authors of this report are Emma Wadie Hobson (TTL, GSURR), Tristan Reed (Consultant, GSURR) and Serge Zelezeck (Consultant, GSURR), who drew on inputs from team members Olivia D’Aoust (Economist, GSURR), Theophile Bougna (Economist, DECRG), Bontje Zaengerling (Urban Specialist, GSURR), Shohei Nakamura (Economist, Poverty and Equity), Alex Chunet (Consultant, GSURR) and Tahsina Akbar (Consultant, GSURR). We would like to thank counterparts in the Government of Cameroon for their active collaboration during all stages of the study and their valuable comments on this report. We would like to particularly recognize the contributions of M. Mve Ebang Francis Rostand (Sous-directeur des Etablissements Humains à la Direction de l'Aménagement du Territoire et de la mise en valeur des Zones Frontalières) of MINEPAT ; Mrs. Fouda Owoundi Anne Marguerite (Chef de la Division des Etudes, de la Planification et de la Coopération) of MINHDU ; Mr. Jean Yango (Directeur des Etudes, de la Planification, des Investissements et du Développement Durable) and his team (M. Hans Simo, Dr. Njocke Gabriel, M. Horcel Sokeng, Ms.Kathy Malonzeu and others) of the Communauté Urbaine de Douala ; Mr. Jacob Medjo Assako (Secretary General), Mr. NDOME Marc and Mr NGALLY Maxime of the Communauté Urbaine de Kribi ; and Mr. Jude Waindim (Secretary General), Romaric Ngong and Mr Jacob Nwachan of the Bamenda City Council. This report and technical assistance project would not be possible without the generous support of the Department of International Development (DFID). 1 Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Global Practice at the World Bank 3 Table of Contents Acronyms ............................................................................................... ……………..5 I. Executive Summary ........................................................................................... 6 II. Introduction .................................................................................................. 16 III. The Opportunity............................................................................................ 20 IV. The Challenge ............................................................................................... 24 V. Spotlight on the informal sector ..................................................................... 30 VI. Institutions: Who Has the Competencies to Lead Urban Economic Development in Cameroon? ............................................................................................................ 34 VII. Opportunities to Build on the Competitive Advantage of Cities ........................ 45 Douala: The Importance of local and international market access ................................................................. 50 Bamenda: Constraints on Entrepreneurship .................................................................................................. 58 Kribi: The Opportunity in Natural Advantages ............................................................................................... 62 VIII. Common Constraints and Recommendations Across Cities ........................... 65 Constraints on city competitiveness .............................................................................................................. 65 Principals for alleviating constraints .............................................................................................................. 67 Recommendations to improve the competitiveness of cities in Cameroon .................................................... 67 References .......................................................................................................................... 76 Appendix A: Urban Wage Premium Regressions ................................................................. 78 Appendix B: Quality of Life Regressions ............................................................................. 80 Appendix C: Specialization and Productivity ....................................................................... 81 Appendix D: Case Study Methodology and Questionnaire .................................................. 83 Appendix E: City Competitiveness Profiles ......................................................................... 86 Bafoussam ......................................................................................................................................................87 Bamenda ....................................................................................................................................................... 88 Bertoua .......................................................................................................................................................... 92 Douala ........................................................................................................................................................... 93 Ebolowa ......................................................................................................................................................... 96 Edea .............................................................................................................................................................. 97 Garoua ........................................................................................................................................................... 98 Kribi ............................................................................................................................................................... 99 Kumba .......................................................................................................................................................... 103 Limbe .......................................................................................................................................................... 104 Maroua ......................................................................................................................................................... 105 Ngaoundere ................................................................................................................................................. 106 Nkongsamba ................................................................................................................................................ 107 Yaounde ...................................................................................................................................................... 108 4 Acronyms ANOR Agence des Normes et de la Qualité APME Agence de Promotion des PMEs API Agence de Promotion des Investissements BRT Bus Rapid Transport CAC Centimes Additionels Communaux CARPA Conseil d'Appui à la Réalisation des Contrats de Partenariat CBD Central Business District CEMAC Central African Economic and Monetary Community CUD Communauté urbaine de Douala DFID Department for International Development (United Kingdom) DO Divisional Officer DSCE Document