Cameroon’s Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, granted an audience on Friday, November 13, 2026, to Youssouf N’Djoré, Country Director of the World Cocoa Foundation – WCF in Côte d’Ivoire.
Building on WCF President Chris Vincent’s previous visit to Cameroon in August 2025, the meeting focused on deepening bilateral collaboration, safeguarding farmer interests, and consolidating Cameroon’s standing in global cocoa trade. As an organization uniting private cocoa and chocolate enterprises, the WCF aims to align value chain stakeholders with evolving international market standards while integrating public authorities into policy and environmental dialogues.
Central to the discussions was the European Union Deforestation Regulation – EUDR, for which the WCF is developing harmonized forest-monitoring tools and risk-assessment methodologies across producing nations.
The Minister stated unequivocally that Cameroon has moved past debating the regulation, which he noted is an external market requirement, and has already implemented all feasible measures to ensure compliance ahead of the December 30, 2026 deadline.
He however criticized the lack of concrete technical and financial backing from the European Union, calling for a dedicated assistance plan to support the costly upgrading of production and traceability systems, particularly for environmentally conscious farmers.
Beyond regulatory compliance, the Minister emphasized that fair remuneration for cocoa growers remains his primary concern. In his view, environmental standards cannot be treated as an end in themselves unless they translate into tangible economic and social improvements in farmers’ living conditions.
Consequently, he argued that the EUDR will only achieve its true objectives if its ecological requirements are matched by fair financial returns for the producers who sustain the industry.
The second major focus of the audience was Cameroon’s upcoming participation in the World Cocoa Foundation Partnership Meeting, scheduled for March 17–18, 2027, in Accra, Ghana.
While past editions of this global industry gathering have largely centered on top producers Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, the WCF is expanding its focus to highlight the growing international prominence of other key producers, specifically Cameroon, Brazil, Ecuador, and Nigeria.
To reflect this shift, the 2027 forum, which will also coincide with the 80th anniversary of the Ghana Cocoa Board – COCOBOD will feature dedicated country-specific sessions.
Cameroon will be given an exclusive platform to showcase its strategic repositioning in the global cocoa market, highlight its competitive strengths, and address remaining structural constraints. To ensure high-level political representation, Youssouf N’Djoré officially presented Minister Mbarga Atangana with an invitation to attend as Cameroon’s political representative.
Welcoming the invitation as a strong mark of recognition for Cameroon’s role in shaping the future of the global cocoa sector, Minister Mbarga Atangana thanked the Foundation for its continued engagement. He assured the WCF envoy that the government will take all necessary measures to guarantee an active, impactful, and high-level Cameroonian presence at the Accra summit next year.
