CAMEROON : MAGZI Issues Default Notices to 29 Companies Over Unpaid Industrial Rents

Pressure is mounting across Cameroon’s industrial zones. Through a statement signed in Yaoundé, MAGZI adopted a more aggressive approach aimed at accelerating the recovery of unpaid rental dues. The institution, which oversees the management of public industrial spaces, targeted 29 companies located in Bassa, Bonabéri and Yaoundé, accusing them of accumulating significant payment arrears.

In detail, 12 companies are affected in the Bassa industrial zone in Douala, seven in Bonabéri and ten in the political capital, Yaoundé. The list includes major industrial and service-sector operators such as Camtel, the state-owned telecommunications company, Biopharma in the pharmaceutical sector, and Batimetal, a specialist in steel construction. Other companies named include CNCC, Solevo and Cameroon Alert System.

The tone adopted by MAGZI’s management leaves little room for ambiguity. In the document dated May 15, 2026, Director General Christol Georges Manon instructed the companies concerned to “honour their contractual commitments” and “settle the outstanding amounts no later than May 30, 2026.” Beyond this deadline, defaulters could face a drastic sanction: the outright termination of their lease agreements.

Beyond the administrative warning, the move reflects a broader tightening in the governance of public industrial assets. The Bassa and Bonabéri industrial zones, located in Douala — the country’s main economic hub — host a substantial share of Cameroon’s manufacturing and logistics activities. Their management by MAGZI therefore represents a strategic issue for the State, both in terms of rental revenues and industrial attractiveness.

While the statement does not specify the total amount of arrears or the duration of the debts, the scale of the list suggests a structural rather than isolated phenomenon. The simultaneous presence of public companies, multinationals and SMEs points to widespread financial pressures affecting businesses operating in these high-cost industrial zones.

The publication of the companies’ names also marks a shift in MAGZI’s recovery strategy. By publicly exposing defaulting tenants, the agency appears to be introducing reputational pressure as a means of accelerating payments ahead of the deadline.

With only days remaining before the May 30, 2026 cut-off date, attention is now turning to the companies concerned, some of which play a strategic role in Cameroon’s economy. Between cash-flow constraints and the risk of contract termination, the situation could prove particularly delicate for an industrial sector already grappling with competitiveness and financing challenges.

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Esther Grâce

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