WASTE DISPOSAL IN YAOUNDE - CAMEROON.

Waste management in the municipality of Yaoundé is overseen by the City Municipality. Initially, HYSACAM Company held the monopoly on waste management. However, in January 2023, the Municipality introduced a second company, Thychlof Sarl. Despite this, in many neighborhoods, it is common to see individuals with tricycle motos going from house to house, collecting waste for a fee and disposing of it in the large trash bins provided by the municipality.

The contracts signed by HYSACAM and THYCHLOF are governed by the Public Contracts Code of 20th June 2018. Public contracts are regulated by the principle of "service rendered," meaning payment is only made after the service has been completed. However, there is an exception to this principle. As waste disposal is a service, Order No. 033/CAB/PM of 13th February 2007, which establishes the General Administrative Clauses Applicable to Public Contracts for Services, allows for an advance payment of up to 20%. This advance must be stipulated in the contract and guaranteed by a conventional bank recognized by the Ministry of Finance. This means that, without any work being done, HYSACAM or THYCHLOF are entitled to receive up to 20% of the contract amount in advance.

However, in the execution of these contracts, it has become evident that they have not fully met the contractual obligations, as the streets remain littered with waste. This indicates that the project was not properly matured, as certain parameters were overlooked, such as improper estimation of workload, lack of appropriate equipment, and insufficient community involvement.

A key solution to address this issue is Community participation. I have observed that in the Biyem-Assi neighborhood for one, residents often dispose of waste carelessly, failing to use the designated trash bins. To address this, I propose that the Municipality collaborate with the Quarter Heads, who can assign committed young people to work on waste disposal in their respective neighborhoods. This would significantly improve the sector by ensuring there is proper monitoring and accountability. Furthermore, designated days for waste collection-perhaps twice a week could be established,The start-off point should be by ensuring that all trash in the designated collection areas is fully cleared. This could be implemented over a period of two months, with sufficient Community sensitization. For areas such as market places, waste removal should be done daily with designated hours for waste disposal.

BERKA DZEKEM IPRF, MPM, MPC, MPF President of the Cameroonian Association of Public Procurement Practitioners (CAPPP) Lecturer at ENAM, ISMP Seminar Facilitator at the Supreme State Audit Institution Cameroon (CONSUPE) and the Advanced Program for Specialization in Public Finances (PSSFP).