Following Somdia‘s decision to abandon Sosucam, despite prior commitments made by Pierre Castel to the President of the Republic, a carefully constructed narrative has emerged. This narrative suggests familial disputes within the group as the driving force behind the exit, while concealing the true motivations behind the move.

According to insiders, Somdia has not abandoned Cameroon entirely. Instead, it has just inked a new deal with Côte d’Ivoire, committing to invest 100 billion FCFA in the country’s sugar sector. The reality reveals a different picture: Somdia left Cameroon due to a deliberate policy of distributing sugar import licenses to regime-connected individuals. This policy flooded the local market with cheaper imports, making it nearly impossible for Sosucam to compete.

Despite these challenges, Somdia invested 4.5 billion FCFA last year, hoping the government would reduce import quotas. No action was taken. Instead, the country imported sugar worth 125 billion FCFA. Worse still, these importers, allegedly acting as fronts for regime elites, benefited from preferential customs treatment. Some imported sugar under the guise of meeting local demand, only to resell it in neighboring markets. A significant stockpile of sugar is currently held at the Ngaoundéré rail terminal, blocked since President Mahamat Idriss Déby reinstated customs barriers on Cameroonian sugar, some of which has since flowed back into the Cameroonian market.

Why Côte d’Ivoire and not Cameroon?

The answer lies in contrasting policies. In Côte d’Ivoire, despite local production falling short of demand, the government does not distribute import licenses to proxies. Instead, it calculates production shortfalls and allocates import quotas strictly to producers when shortages occur. This ensures that only those directly involved in production benefit from import licenses.