6,000 trash bins to be distributed in Limbe to improve waste management
By Guy-Bruno Maimo
The Limbe City Council has recorded a significant leap in revenue performance, with councillors unanimously hailing the City Mayor, Dr. Paul Efome Lisombe Mbole Ngale, for steering the municipality to an increase of over one billion CFA francs in 2025.
The commendations came during the First Ordinary Session of the council devoted to the examination and adoption of the 2025 Administrative, Management and Stores Accounts, held on Friday, April 10, 2026, at the council’s deliberative chambers in Bota.
Presiding over the session, the mayor presented a financial report showing that the council mobilised approximately 3.43 billion CFA francs out of a projected budget of 7 billion CFA francs, representing a 48.94 percent execution rate. The figure marks a steady rise from about 2.6 billion CFA francs in 2024 and 1.5 billion CFA francs in 2023, reflecting a consistent upward trend in internally generated revenue.
The First Assistant Senior Divisional Officer for Fako, Awah Dean, who represented the Senior Divisional Officer, Engelbert Viang Mekala, commended the council’s leadership for the improvement, noting that the increase in revenue reflects growing financial discipline and commitment to local development. The performance comes despite years of economic strain linked to the socio-political crisis in the North West and South West Regions and the shutdown of SONARA following the 2019 fire incident, which significantly affected the council’s revenue base. Despite these challenges, the mayor attributed the progress to deliberate strategies focused on revenue-generating projects and prudent financial management, noting that the council is gradually moving towards greater administrative, political and financial stability.
Despite these challenges, the mayor attributed the progress to deliberate strategies focused on investment in revenue-generating projects and prudent financial management: “we are moving from one stage of stability to another, administratively, politically and financially. Our focus has been on projects that can sustain the council and guarantee its financial future,” he said. Out of the revenue mobilised, about 1.83 billion CFA francs was expended on key obligations including salaries, tax payments, debt servicing, sanitation, water provision, and public lighting.
Council Executive members during session
The council also executed several development projects in 2025, notably the construction of lock-up stores in markets to boost revenue, rehabilitation of earth roads, partial dredging of the Njengele River, and the clearance of a firefighting truck from the Douala Port. Progress was equally recorded in the updating of the Limbe Urban Master Plan, alongside the provision of boreholes to communities through international partnership support. Other interventions included the construction of a water supply system at the Old Market, ongoing works at the New Town Market, and financial transfers to Subdivisional councils, all aimed at improving service delivery and urban infrastructure.
Looking ahead, the mayor announced the imminent distribution of 6,000 household trash bins as part of efforts to strengthen waste management and keep the city clean, with residents expected to properly store waste for collection by sanitation services to curb indiscriminate dumping, adding that the council has also secured a presidential grant of 400 million CFA francs to support the dredging of waterways, construction of culverts, and establishment of waste pre-collection points across the municipality.
In a major boost to the city’s long-term outlook, the Prime Minister, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute, has endorsed the Mondoli-Limbe Smart City Project, a 500 billion CFA francs initiative expected to transform the coastal city into a modern hub for tourism, commerce, and investment.
At the close of deliberations, all 33 councillors voted unanimously to adopt the accounts and recommended that the council’s website be made more functional to enhance transparency and public access to information, and a new measure requiring businesses along major streets to install electronic signboards, with defaulters liable to a fine of 150,000 CFA francs.
The session ended on a symbolic note, as a warm exchange between the mayor and his First Deputy, Karen Muto Tanga Wouapit, signalled renewed cohesion within the council leadership. Reaffirming his commitment, Dr. Ngale pledged to sustain efforts aimed at improving the wellbeing of the population and accelerating development in Limbe, as the city positions itself for a more stable and prosperous future.
