CAMEROON’S INFRASTRUCTURE: A CONTINENTAL PERSPECTIVE Because of the poor condition of its road network and delays in the port of Douala, Cameroon’s ability to move goods and connect manufacturers and consumers with international markets is one of the lowest in the world. Feedback on the logistics ―friendliness‖ of countries is reflected in the Logistics Performance Index (LPI). The Logistics Performance Index is based on a worldwide survey of global freight forwarders and express carriers, who provide feedback on the logistics ―friendliness‖ of the countries in which they operate. In 2010, Cameroon’s LPI, at 2.55, ranked 105 out of the 155 countries assessed by the LPI. Even so, it was still above the Sub-Saharan Africa average(2.42)and the highest among Central African countries (figure 5).

Zooming in on the components of the LPI, in the case of Cameroon the quality of trade- and transport-related infrastructure (ports, railroads, roads, information technology) and the efficiency of clearance (speed, simplicity, and predictability of formalities) by border control agencies, are the dimensions that received the lowest scores by operators in the country.

Transporting goods from port to final destination across Central Africa is even more costly than in other regions of SubSaharan Africa, which are already costly compared to the rest of the developing world. Moving freight along intraregional

**Figure 5. The Logistics Performance Index inCentral African countries**

<!-- Start of picture text --> 3<br>2.5<br>2<br>1.5<br>1<br>0.5<br>0<br>Source : World Bank 2010a.<br>Logistics Performance Index<br>Chad Rep. Gabon Rwanda SSA<br>Cameroon Congo, Dem. Congo, Rep.<br><!-- End of picture text --> corridors in the Central African region<sup>2</sup> costs twice as much as in southern Africa,<sup>3</sup> where distances are significantly longer. Moving a metric ton (tonne) of freight from port to hinterland destination costs between $230 and $650 along intraregional corridors in Central Africa, compared with $120 to $270 in southern Africa (AICD 2010b). In fact, transport costs in Central Africa remain among the highest in SubSaharan Africa at $0.11 to $0.26 per tonne-km, compared with $0.06 to $0.08 in West Africa (LoméOuagadougou and Cotonou-Niamey) and East Africa (Mombasa-Kigali and Mombasa-Kampala), and ($0.05 to $0.06 in Southern Africa (Durban-Lusaka and Durban-Ndola) (World Bank 2011c).

Within Central Africa, there is a huge cost differential in transporting freight between coastal countries (such as Cameroon) and landlocked countries such as (Central African Republic and Chad). This reflects the fact that final destinations in coastal countries tend to be relatively close to the sea, and the costs of crossing an international land border are avoided. For these reasons, freight transport costs to and from Cameroon are among the lowest in Central Africa at $1,379 per container, even if they remain very high in absolute terms.<sup>4</sup> The average time to export and import is 23 and 26 days, respectively (table

> 2 Comprising Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

> 3 Comprising Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe

> 4 Cost measures the fees levied on a 20-foot container in U.S. dollars. For more on the methodology behind the figure on trading across borders see World Bank 2011c.

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