Cameroon Courts Development Partners for CFAF386bn Youth Plan

Cameroon is seeking CFAF386.1 billion to finance its Youth Plan for 2025–2030, the operational framework supporting the country’s National Youth Policy for 2025–2035.

The financing framework was presented in Yaounde on August 11 during a round table convened to mobilize development agencies, technical and financial partners, the private sector and other stakeholders around the implementation of the policy and its accompanying plan.

Education and training account for the largest share of the proposed budget. Of the CFAF386.1 billion required for the Youth Plan, CFAF334 billion, or 86.5%, is allocated to education and training. Employment and economic inclusion are assigned CFAF30.2 billion, representing 7.8% of the total. Participation, health and well-being will receive CFAF11.6 billion, or 3%, while institutional governance accounts for CFAF10.3 billion, or 2.7%.

The distribution places human-capital development at the center of the plan. Planned interventions include vocational training, apprenticeships, digital skills, artificial intelligence, science, technology, engineering and mathematics education, as well as support for innovation and youth entrepreneurship.

The August 11 round table is intended to identify areas of convergence between the priorities of development partners and those set out in the National Youth Policy, while exploring opportunities for collaboration and coordinated financing.

Paul Tasong, Minister Delegate at the Ministry of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, said the meeting was aimed at securing broader ownership of the policy among institutions involved in development.

“It is important that all actors rally around this policy because it gives direction. The objective is to ensure that all the actors of development, starting with public administrations, rally around this key public policy instrument focused on youth,” Tasong told reporters.

Employment remains a major policy objective

The CFAF386.1 billion financing requirement comes against employment and income indicators that illustrate the scale of the challenge facing young Cameroonians.

According to the national youth diagnosis contained in the National Youth Policy, the youth unemployment rate stands at 10.4%, while the employment rate is estimated at 39.3%. The document reports a poverty rate of 37% and states that 63% of young people have training needs. It also says 80% identify employment as a priority.

Employment and economic inclusion therefore constitute one of the policy’s four strategic pillars. The CFAF30.2 billion allocated directly to this component will support employability, entrepreneurship and integration into strategic sectors.

Priority areas include agriculture, technology, the green economy and other high-growth sectors. The plan also provides for financial inclusion through credit and guarantee mechanisms, alongside support for women entrepreneurs, start-ups and members of the diaspora.

Existing programs provide an indication of the employment objectives being pursued alongside the new policy.

Tasong said the Projet de promotion de l’inclusion économique et de l’employabilité des femmes et des jeunes (PROPIEJ) aims to support more than 20,000 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and create 65,000 jobs. The program is also intended to support import substitution in the agropastoral sector.

Separately, the Youth Economic Inclusion Programme targets 65,000 vulnerable young people aged 18 to 35 across Cameroon’s 10 regions between 2024 and 2028.

The National Youth Policy also introduces what the government describes as the Approche Jeunesse, or youth mainstreaming approach, under which youth-related considerations are to be incorporated across public policy rather than addressed only through standalone youth programs.

Youth Affairs and Civic Education Minister Mounouna Foutsou said the approach is intended to improve coordination among government institutions and development partners working on programs affecting young people.

Under the framework, youth considerations are expected to be incorporated into the design, planning, budgeting and evaluation of development programs. The policy document presents the approach as a shift away from fragmented interventions towards a more coordinated and data-driven system.

CFAF334bn allocated to education and skills

Education and training account for by far the largest share of planned expenditure under the 2025–2030 Youth Plan.

The CFAF334 billion allocation will finance interventions covering foundational skills, bilingualism, digital technology, artificial intelligence and STEM education. It will also support internships, apprenticeships and measures aimed at improving the transition from education into employment.

During the development of the policy, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reported that people aged 15 to 35 represent 36.89% of Cameroon’s population, based on a national population estimate of 29.8 million.

The agency linked increased investment in young people to Cameroon’s ability to capture a demographic dividend by improving education, skills, employment opportunities and economic participation.

Samuel Kissi, UNFPA Deputy Representative and spokesperson for the United Nations system at the round table, said development partners were seeking to combine expertise and financing in support of the program.

“No African country can attain sustainable development without deliberate efforts and deliberate investments in its young people. We are pleased to be part of this effort to bring partners, expertise and finances together to make sure that we are all pulling in the same direction,” Kissi said.

Implementation of the current Youth Plan runs from 2025 to 2030, within the broader National Youth Policy covering 2025 to 2035.

The implementation roadmap provides for accelerated execution in 2026 and nationwide expansion in 2027. Partnership and innovation initiatives are due to be consolidated in 2028, followed by a mid-term evaluation in 2029 and completion of the current operational plan in 2030.

Mercy Fosoh