On July 9, 2026, the BEAC officially joined PAPSS, the pan-African instant payment system in local currencies. A boon for Cameroonian operators who will now be able to trade with Africa without going through the Dollar or the Euro.
This is a major advance for intra-African trade. The Minister of Commerce, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, announced in a statement dated August 21, 2026, the official membership of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) in the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS).
Officialized on July 9, 2026, this membership places the CEMAC zone at the heart of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). PAPSS, developed and deployed by Afreximbank, is one of the key instruments for the operationalization of AfCFTA.
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Concretely, this is a small revolution for the Cameroonian private sector. Until now, a transaction between an operator in Yaoundé and a partner in Ghana or Kenya had to go through third currencies such as the dollar and through correspondent banks outside the continent, with long delays and high costs.
With PAPSS, cross-border payments become instant, in local currencies, faster, more efficient, and more secure, independently of external intermediaries. A Cameroonian merchant will be able to pay his Nigerian supplier in CFA francs, who will receive nairas directly.
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For the Ministry of Commerce, this membership is a boon. It should help accelerate trade and reduce the cost of African commerce. Minister Mbarga Atangana now encourages the business community to quickly adopt this new tool to fully benefit from it and boost the competitiveness of Made in Cameroon products on the continent.