Sold as a lever of autonomy for local authorities, the 2024 local taxation law is bogged down in its own contradictions, revealing the flaws of a state unable to carry out its reform.
In a scientific article published by Peggy Kuate Todom, PhD in political science at the University of Dschang, in the African Journal of Legal, Administrative and Political Sciences, the analysis dismantles the illusions of a reform presented as historic.
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According to him, “the reform of local taxation in Cameroon (…) is bogged down in a glaring contradiction: the state, supposed to drive change, becomes its main obstacle.” Behind the stated ambition, Law No. 2024/020 of December 23, 2024, already exposes its limits.
On paper, everything seemed in place for success: dematerialization of payments, rationalization of taxes, increased involvement of the tax administration. But the administrative reality abruptly catches up with these ambitions. Lack of equipment, faulty digital tools, unprepared services: the reform hits a jammed state machine. “A reform is only as good as its implementation,” concludes the author.
The blockage is first technical. Taxpayers struggle to obtain their unique identification number, a prerequisite for paying taxes. This malfunction creates a formidable domino effect: no registration, no payment; no payment, no revenue; and no revenue, no viable local policy.
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Even more worrying, the transfer of collection to the state’s tax services, supposed to improve performance, seems to have worsened the situation. “Collection still largely relies on voluntary declarations,” notes Peggy Kuate Todom, highlighting a fragile system far from the announced standards.
Added to this is a political dimension hard to ignore. In a tense electoral context in 2025, tax mobilization would have been relegated to the background, some officials fearing the unpopularity of restrictive measures. A political caution bordering on inaction further weakens local finances.
In the end, the reform supposed to empower Decentralized Territorial Collectivities seems to produce the opposite effect. Dependent, disorganized, deprived of resources, they struggle to fulfill their missions. Local taxation, presented as a driver of development, remains to this day an unfinished promise or even a symbol of public impotence.
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