On May 23, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM, the Cameroon Economic Policy Institute of the Henri Kouam Foundation convened a high-level panel at Hôtel Franco to explore the state of women-led entrepreneurship in Cameroon. Despite a dynamic informal sector and growing female participation in manufacturing, businesses continue to face systemic barriers. According to the National Institute of Statistics, between 2009 and 2016, nearly 36% of enterprises failed, with 2,316 of 6,458 shutting down. Factors such as company size, managerial education, and legal structure contributed to this decline, revealing a fragile ecosystem particularly hostile to smaller ventures.
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Entrepreneurs in Cameroon must navigate a landscape marked by underdeveloped financial services, limited skilled labor, heavy taxation, bureaucratic inertia, and poor infrastructure. Startups and established firms alike contend with complex regulations, constrained access to capital, and cybersecurity threats. For women, these structural limitations are compounded by gendered expectations and restricted access to export markets and financial instruments. Yet, women account for half the population and form the majority in informal enterprise. More than 23% of manufacturing firms are also female-led, highlighting a critical need for inclusive growth strategies.
The event shed light on the real-world obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs and encouraged dialogue among key stakeholders. Discussions focused on how private sector actors are adapting to support women’s business initiatives, the extent of public sector engagement in promoting female-led ventures, and the development of policy tools to enhance access to credit and international trade for women-owned businesses. By bringing together perspectives from finance, academia, and policy, the forum proposed actionable solutions for a more equitable entrepreneurial landscape.
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The panel featured distinguished experts, including Professor Kelly Mua Kingsley, a leading finance scholar and public sector strategist with two decades of experience in African fiscal governance. Holding degrees from Dschang, Harvard, and Charisma University, he currently directs financial operations at the Ministry of Finance and serves on several continental boards, including BEAC and ATIDI. He has lectured worldwide and authored over twenty books and numerous academic articles on markets, governance, and development.
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Also featured was Mrs. Mbiadja L’Or-Sylvie Epse Mafouo, Regional Director at Afriland First Bank in Yaoundé, overseeing fifteen branches and seventy-four employees. Her expertise spans both local and international banking, with a proven track record in credit issuance and financial turnaround. Under her leadership, a previously struggling branch in the Centre region achieved a transformation from a 64 million FCFA loss to a 400 million profit over four years, ranking it among the top-performing agencies in the network.
Designed for entrepreneurs, policymakers, professionals, and students, the initiative fostered a deeper understanding of gender dynamics in economic development and inspired targeted reforms aimed at unlocking the full potential of women in business.