As part of the eighth African Anti-Corruption Day, the National Anti-Corruption Commission of Cameroon (CONAC) has launched a series of initiatives aimed at raising awareness and strengthening whistleblower protection mechanisms.
This year, the theme of the eighth African Anti-Corruption Day is “ Effective whistleblower protection mechanisms: tools to combat corruption “To support this fight, the National Anti-Corruption Commission of Cameroon (CONAC) is organizing a series of activities. The objective is to prevent and suppress corruption.
Since July 9, training workshops for heads of anti-corruption units of public institutions and decentralized local authorities have been organized in the city of Bertoua, in the Eastern region. The campaign is also extended to the population in order to raise awareness. All this with the aim of preaching a new mentality.
Cameroon is currently the second least corrupt country in the CEMAC zone, after Gabon. According to the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2023, published by Transparency International on January 30, 2024, Cameroon has recorded a slight improvement in Africa.
On a scale of 0 (very corrupt) to 100 (very clean), the Central African country obtained a score of 27/100, which places it 34th in Africa and 140th in the world in the ranking of countries perceived as the least corrupt out of 180 countries classified.
Top 10 most corrupt sectors in Cameroon:
According to a report recently published by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (Conac), acts of corruption cost the country 4.6 billion CFA francs during the year 2022. This report also highlights the sectors most affected by corruption and the types of offenses that were denounced.
The Ministry of Cadastre and Land Affairs (Mindcaf) ranks first among the sectors most affected by corruption. With 705 denunciations, or 20.3% of the complaints recorded, Mindcaf is accused of embezzlement of funds allocated to the compensation of victims of major state projects as well as land disputes. For example, the Conac report reveals financial losses of 67 million CFA francs caused by the sale of state land in Maroua.
The public administration sector comes in second with 562 denunciations, or 16.8% of the complaints registered. The most common offences in this sector are the undue collection of salaries, the use of false documents and corruption in administrative competitions.
The Finance sector ranks third in terms of corruption, with accusations of practicing “percentages” in payments and embezzling funds intended for retirement pensions and career boosters.
The education sector ranks fourth with 285 complaints, mainly related to the mismanagement of funds of the Association of Parents of Pupils and Students (APEE) as well as corruption in recruitment processes.
The Markets sector is also singled out for corruption in public procurement.
Other sectors such as Water and Energythere Public healthTHE TradeTHE Forests and Wildlifeas well as Transportscomplete the top 10 sectors affected by corruption. The offences reported in these sectors range from issuing false invoices to illegal exploitation of natural resources and issuing fake driving licences.
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