Aviation, Maritime Agreements Top Cameroon-Egypt Transport Talks

Cameroon and Egypt have moved to accelerate transport cooperation, with discussions focusing on a long-pending air transport agreement, a proposed maritime cooperation framework and investment opportunities in ports, railways and civil aviation. The issues were discussed during a September 9 meeting between Cameroon’s Transport Minister Jean Ernest Masséna Ngalle Bibehe and an Egyptian delegation led by Karim Sherif, Egypt’s Assistant Foreign Minister for African Affairs.

The delegation included officials from Egyptian ministries responsible for transport and public health, as well as representatives of EgyptAir, Arab Contractors and Elsewedy. The meeting was coordinated by Egypt’s ambassador to Cameroon.

According to Cameroon’s Ministry of Transport, Ngalle Bibehe called for the signing of the bilateral air transport agreement, which has been pending since 2019. He also proposed advancing discussions on a maritime cooperation agreement between the two countries’ port authorities.

Sherif said the delegation was in Cameroon to explore cooperation opportunities in maritime transport, aviation and railways. Representatives of the Egyptian companies then presented their areas of expertise and identified sectors in which they could participate.

In the maritime sector, Cameroon presented several projects, including the rehabilitation of Garoua river port, construction of Limbe Port, the third development phase of Kribi Port and the proposed extension of Douala Port. Other projects include a certification center for seafarers and the digitalization of administrative procedures for vessels. The Egyptian delegation was invited to examine possible technical and financial participation in the projects.

Cameroon has been expanding its port infrastructure. The second container terminal at Kribi Deep Seaport, inaugurated in May 2025, increased the port’s annual handling capacity from about 300,000 to around 1.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units.

In civil aviation, officials presented plans for a proposed new international airport in the Littoral Region. Cameroon and Egypt have also held technical discussions on cooperation between their civil aviation authorities, including aviation safety, airports, air navigation, aircraft airworthiness and training.

The talks also covered road safety, electric vehicles, intercity transport, traffic monitoring and meteorology. Proposed cooperation in meteorology includes equipment calibration, training and solar power solutions for remote weather stations.

The two sides agreed to accelerate work on the air transport agreement and maritime cooperation while continuing discussions on railways, ports, road transport and meteorological services.

Mercy Fosoh