Cameroon  begs for  funds at the United Nations General Assembly

Cameroon has now begged funds at the United Nations General Assembly

Cameroon’s Foreign Minister, speaking on behalf of President Paul Biya, addressed development financing, the Northwest and Southwest conflict, AfCFTA, terrorism, peacekeeping, Security Council reform, climate change and artificial intelligence.

1. Cameroon wants greater access to development financing.

Cameroon’s major financial message was that developing countries need greater access to global financial resources.

“Financing for development should not be considered as some kind of alms or kindness.”

Instead, Cameroon argued:

“It is an investment in stability, shared prosperity and collective security.”

2. Cameroon called for international financing commitments to be implemented.

The Foreign Minister called for:

“The diligent and comprehensive implementation of the commitments made in Seville in July of 2025 on the issue of financing for development.”

3. Cameroon wants reform of the international financial architecture.

It called for:

“The necessary reforms of the international financial architecture and the multilateral financial architecture.”

The objective, according to the speech, is:

“To give countries of the Global South a more fair shot.”

4. Northwest and Southwest conflict: Cameroon says the situation is improving.

The government referred directly to the conflict-affected Northwest and Southwest regions:

“The government of my country is working to ensure a return to normality in our Northwest and Southwest regions.”

It said government security and reintegration measures were already producing:

“Tangible and observable results on the ground.”

No numerical evidence for those claimed results was provided in the speech.

5. Cameroon called for industrialization and local processing of African resources.

The government advocated renewed international trade alongside:

“Industrialisation and transforming raw materials locally.”

It also called for stronger African regional integration.

6. Cameroon highlighted AfCFTA.

Cameroon said it was:

“One of the first countries in the continent to have ratified its statute.”

It pledged to contribute to expanding the African Continental Free Trade Area and intra-African trade.

7. Cameroon backed greater African representation on the Security Council.

The government reaffirmed its support for the African Union’s common position seeking better representation for Africa within the UN Security Council.

8. Cameroon highlighted its UN peacekeeping contribution.

It pledged continued participation in UN peacekeeping operations and:

“Training and building capacities of African staff that serve in these operations.”

9. Cameroon pledged to continue fighting terrorism around Lake Chad.

Working with the Lake Chad Basin Commission, Cameroon said:

“We will continue to fight tirelessly against terrorism.”

It also pledged continued stabilization efforts in affected areas.

10. Climate change and artificial intelligence.

Cameroon highlighted floods, droughts and wildfires as global concerns and argued that advances in science and artificial intelligence should:

“Benefit all humanity.”

11. Very few measurable domestic achievements were presented.

The speech did not provide figures for roads constructed, jobs created, electricity added, hospitals built, poverty reduction, industrial production, agricultural output or improvements in the Northwest and Southwest.

Its principal domestic claim was simply that measures in the Northwest and Southwest were producing:

“Tangible and observable results on the ground.”

So Cameroon’s main economic request at the UN was development financing and reform of the international financial architecture, while its main domestic security claim was that conditions in the Northwest and Southwest were moving toward normality.

Prof.