Dear Esteemed members, partners and the general public, you are all welcome to PROFALCAM, the National Platform of Promoters of Local Flour in Cameroon. In about two months PROFALCAM shall celebrate its first anniversary of birth and its official recognition. The Constituent General Assembly of members that held on the 23 and 24th of August 2023 saw the official birth of PROFALCAM that had been in gestation since 2017 following the official creation of an Inter-Ministerial Work group enlarged to the private sector by the then Minister of Economy, Planning and Regional Development, (MINEPAT), Mr Louis Paul MOTAZE. A real tool for the development of Cameroon flour from cassava, sweet potatoes, plantains, yams, cereals etc… the birth of PROFALCAM is proof of government commitment to develop a public-private partnership in its drive to provide substitutes products in the country and reduce dependency and vast importation of some vital food products.
The choice of cassava, sweet potatoes, plantain, maize, sorghum and eventually yams in the area of competence of PROFALCAM are both economically and anthropologically strategic. While we consider the element of comparative advantage in the production of the raw material for flour production, we remain committed to the fact that the culinary culture of the people is not disrupted. In Cameroon, flour promotion and consumption must be considered in their real context. Many see flour only in the context of High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) generally for bakery and pastries. The culinary history of Cameroon shows that over 80% of the population consumes daily fufu or couscous produced from various crop sources and transformed through different processes. 95% of cassava for food is obtained through the fermentation process. In this category, we have gari, dried water fufu, Nkum-Nkum (couscous). For purpose of preservation, fermented wet cake intended for bobolo, miondo and mitoumba shall soon be in the form of packaged fermented flour. Seen in this context, PROFALCAM shall have flour of different categories processed from cassava, sweet potatoes, plantain, cereals, yams etc.. intended for the local and foreign markets. HQCF which may constitute less than 30% of the sum total may attract investors who intend to produce composite flour of wheat, plantain and cassava for bakeries, pastries, etc.
As a specific market with well-established prices for the raw materials from its members, PROFALCAM is becoming a strong pulling framework. Because of the presence of an attractive structured market and stable prices for the raw materials, production of the six identified crops shall double in the next few years. Our innovative approach to make agriculture attractive to youths who are grouped in a business structure or organ shall in the next five years bring in at least 10.000 youths in the food systems that concern PROFALCAM. Within the framework of this special project for youth in agriculture, we shall support then build resilient business, earning decent monthly salaries and part of their projected profit at the end of each cycle considered as saving. Flour production and consumption shall catalyze the industrial conservation, packaging and marketing of the surplus production of cassava, yams, plantains etc. in their cooked, semi cooked and or original form. We are therefore in a dynamic of implementing a model to enhance the building of a resilient food system to feed Cameroon for generations and this dynamic is clearly contained in the Internal Rules of PROFALCAM which advocates for the promotion and adoption of development focus research and innovation. Imagine focus need research where PROFALCAM funds Research for the production of a new variety of cassava that produces about 50 tons per hectare at the small holder’s farm and that the cassava is both consumed in its natural or transformed state by the farmer herself and the public. Problems of poverty, funding, food security, deforestation, climate change etc… find significant solutions.
As more and more Cameroonians are understanding this ecosystem that pays less attention for the hunt of a hitherto non-impact funding, our numbers are increasing by the day. Our numbers have risen from 100 moral members in 2022 to above 450 members representing over 6800 farmers and processors in only 10 months. For the production cropping seasons for 2023, we are supporting farmers to obtain loan for production on more than 10.000 hectares to ensure availability of raw material for 2024. Although many Financial Institutions think we provide strong arguments for them to be interested in PROFALCAM, we understand their concern that our eco-system is too good to be true in an environment where no other eco-system appears comparable. This slowness to engage by some of our key potential partners is a great concern to some of our members who are not yet used to how government and bank machineries function – (slow prudent but certain when committed).
In February 2023, PROFALCAM recruited over 100 personnel, a blend of the old guards and young graduates. As proof of their commitment, all agreed to work earnestly to develop this eco-system and vision for deferred monthly salary for a period of at least six months, time to permit PROFALCAM to source for funds to do business normally. In PROFALCAM, we are all committed to make its objectives a real success. The government championed by MINEPAT is really committed. Unlike others, PROFALCAM request guarantees for loans at preferential interest rates, a veritable impact grant for the benefits of the committed members and partners. In fact, a 15% reduction of any commercial interest on loans awarded to PROFALCAM for its members has more than 100% impact compared to the present approach of grants to farmers. MINADER through some of its Regional Delegations is highly committed by providing office spaces to our zonal staffs and carrying out sensitization exercises jointly with PROFALCAM personnel and elected officials in their regions. Permit me therefore, to seize this opportunity to sincerely thank you as well as the many others who in back office are supporting the works of this Innovation Platform.
                                                           Sir George N. MBANDA
Knihgt of Agriculture Merit