The various institutions specializing in international finance deplore huge losses from Africa due to Illicit Financial Flows (IFF). The dizzying numbers presented by these institutions speak volumes about the magnitude of the problem. 50 billion Dollars lost on average by the African continent per year between 2003 and 2012 (more than 29,000 billion Fcfa) according to the World Bank.
According to Global Financial Integrity (GFI), multinationals also play a leading role in illicit financial flows. The research organization also said that some of these companies are using illegal practices. As an illustration, falsified commercial invoices accounted for 68.8% of illegal capital outflows from sub-Saharan Africa.
Illicit Financial Flows from Cameroon have become a subject of great concern because of their scale and their negative effects on development and governance in Cameroon. Note that the country records a loss of 7 billion dollars, about 4,200 billion FCFA, around the public budget.
IFFs prioritize profitability and the minimization of inputs, affecting workers' remuneration, working conditions and facilitating, in extreme cases, the exploitation of workers. However, the income we lost could have been spent on activities that benefit multinationals: health, worker’s training and investment in infrastructure. Instead, lost income makes the rich get richer while the poor get poorer. In addition, it is the poor who suffer because they depend most on public services.
The fight against illicit financial flows should be at the center of concerted discussions between governments, the private sector, civil society and international institutions for a united front, advocacy for a more committed public policy and the establishment of a framework for the exchange of information and experience between African countries.
The 2016 Mining Code makes reference to international commitments in financial transparency, the CEMAC directive on transparency is internalized through the 2018 Code on transparency. The audit institutions ANIF, CONAC, the Supreme Audit Court Chamber address these questions.
Africa must change its discourse. It can do without development aid, it needs to recover lost income. Let us put an end to illicit financial flows and ensure that the money is used for equitable development.
The objectives of the campaign are to support the efforts of the pan-African campaign “Stop the Bleeding of Africa” by raising awareness among political decision-makers and national opinion on the scourge and the consequences of illicit financial flows on the national economy and populations.
More specifically, it will be:
• Sensibilize the national community on the practices which favor the bleeding of the economy with regard to the government policy of mobilization of domestic resources;
• Engage in a structured dialogue with the Cameroonian public authorities to accelerate the agenda for combating illicit financial flows through corrective measures;
• Collect at least 350 signatures of commitment in favor of the fight against Illicit Financial Flows.
