26 June 2009
document
Below is the final communiqué of the Cabinet meeting of Thursday, 25 June 2009. «The Prime Minister, Head of Government, Chief Ephraim INONI, yesterday, Thursday 25 June 2009 as from 11 :00 a.m. in the Prime Minister's Office, chaired an important Cabinet Meeting attended by Vice Prime Ministers, Ministers of State, Ministers, Ministers-Delegate as well as his close aides.
Three items featured on the agenda, namely:
a statement by the Minister for Social Affairs on: "the national policy on the protection of disabled persons";
a statement by the Minister for Public Works on : "the issue of the computerization of road weigh stations and toll gates";
a report by the Minister for Youth Affairs on: "the progress in the putting in place of the National Youth Council".
In his statement, the Minister for Social Affairs indicated that the protection of persons with disabilities, whose regime was organized by the law of 21 July 1983 is intended to restore the dignity of disabled persons and make them full actors of development.
To that end, the Government set up a National Committee on the re-education and socio-economic reintegration of disabled persons (CONRHA), as well as operational instruments like the Cardinal Paul Emile LEGER National Centre for the Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons (CNRPH) of Yaounde or the Bulu Blind Centre of Buea.
The Minister then pointed out that, in line with the recommendations of the 1st Forum on National Solidarity held in Yaounde in June 2005, his ministry places emphasis on incorporating the handicap and vulnerable approach in sectoral development policies and programmes, in addition to impairment prevention, re-education and socio-economic integration. Thus, a practical guide on disabled persons' access to infrastructure and buildings that are public or are open to the public was drafted, and partnerships forged to strengthen the school attendance of children with disabilities or whose parents are poor and disabled.
Among prospects, the Minister for Social Affairs mentioned inter alia the completion of construction works on the Centre for the Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons of Maroua and the building of a centre for the rehabilitation of current and former mental patients with disabilities at Mfou.
At the end of the ensuing discussions, the Head of Government recalled that the protection of persons with disabilities is one of the priorities of the social policy of the President of the Republic and that its cross-cutting nature calls for an inter-ministerial approach. He instructed the Minister for Social Affairs to adapt the curriculum of the National Institute of Social Work to cater for specific cases of serious impairment and to finalize the project for the creation of a national solidarity fund.
The Cabinet Meeting continued with the statement by the Minister for Public Works on the issue of the computerization of road weighing stations and toll-gates. It revealed that these instruments used in financing the road infrastructure and road heritage protection policy are not giving the full measure of their potential, owing especially to the human factor.
The revenue generated by the 34 toll-gates installed along the national tarred network registers an average annual deficit of about CFAF 3.5 billion.
As for weighing stations, the 1,500Km of roads protected by the road weighing mechanism continue to suffer degradation due to overloading despite the streamlining of the management of these stations.
Based on these observations therefore, the Ministry for Public Works suggested the urgent computerization of tollgates and weighing stations, alongside the necessary mutation of the Road Fund.
At the end of this statement, the Prime Minister approved the proposal of the Minister for Public Works, prescribed the launch of the related studies as well as the coupling of weighing stations and tollgates in the road projects being studied or launched. The Head of Government also asked the Minister for Finance to expedite the reform for the transition to a second-generation Road Fund.
Lastly, the floor was given to the Minister for Youth Affairs whose report on progress in putting in place the National Youth Council presented an assessment of this process and the prospects for its completion.
His report revealed that the database of youth organizations has been updated. The strategy paper on the information, sensitization and mobilization of the youth is available, while the by-laws, internal rules and regulations and electoral code of the National Youth Council were adopted during the General Assembly of 16 January 2009.
The Minister for Youth Affairs noted that the last phase of this process - to commence on 1 July 2009 - will register a pause for the elections of the steering organs of the Council at the council, divisional, regional and national levels, preceded by awareness raising of youth associations. The bureaus thus elected will thereafter receive capacity-building for an efficient discharge of their functions.
After taking cognizance of this report, the Prime Minister instructed the Minister for Youth Affairs to do everything to ensure that the future steering organs of the National Youth Council become operational before the end of the year.
The Cabinet Meeting was adjourned at 1:45 p.m. after the examination of various issues linked to governmental activity».
Yaounde, 25 June 2009
Jules Doret Ndongo,
Secretary-General of the Prime Minister's Office
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