"They Didn't Even Know the Law" Minister Mbah Acha Brings Anti-Mismanagement Training to Bamenda
Imagine a government official handling public money millions of francs meant for schools, hospitals, and roads but not knowing the basic rules that govern how that money should be spent. Not stealing it. Just not knowing.That is the uncomfortable truth that brought one of Cameroon's most Senior Female Ministers to Bamenda this week
Government Officials, Regional Delegates, and Public administrators gathered at Ayaba Hotel in Bamenda on Wednesday the 10th of June 2026 for the opening of a three-day capacity-building workshop focused on public financial accountability.
The Minister Delegate at the Presidency in Charge of Supreme State Audit,H.E Mbah Acha Rose Fomundam, officially launched the training before speaking directly to journalists about what field audits across the country had revealed.
"They Didn't Even Know the Laws"
The workshop, running from June 10 to 12, targets public authorising officers and vote holders from the North West and South West Regions. It is organised under the authority of CONSUPE, the Supreme State Audit Office, the institution responsible for oversight of Cameroon's public finances.
Speaking to the press after the launch, the Minister was candid about what prompted the initiative.
"We identified, as we went into the field, that many vote holders and managers were not even aware of the basic laws and basic texts governing them," she said. "And so they did things according to the practice they met."
"A practice can be long-lasting but if it is not found in the laws, it means nothing. Everything must be founded in the laws and regulations governing that institution."
According to the Minister, the problems uncovered during field visits fell into three categories ignorance of the law, negligence, and in some cases, deliberate non-compliance.
"Some of them we realised were out of ignorance of the law. Some of them were out of negligence. And some of them was just sheer disobedience."
Prevention Over Prosecution
Rather than wait for auditors to find violations and impose financial liability, CONSUPE is taking a preventive approach training public administrators before infractions occur.
"Prevention is better than cure," the Minister said. "We don't want to come when the default has already been committed and they are being asked to pay because they will never be able to repair all the damage caused."
The intent is straightforward: equip public administrators with the knowledge they need, so that when CONSUPE auditors return for control, the accounts are in order.
"All we want is transparency, accountability, and good governance from them as vote holders and as managers," she said.
Six Sessions, One Goal
The workshop is structured around six technical sessions, delivered largely by Dr. Wambang Nyamalum Alfred. The sessions cover the core concepts that public officers most frequently misunderstand or misapply in their day-to-day management of public resources.
Session one introduces mismanagement and the liabilities it attracts. Session two examines how irregularities and mismanagement are sanctioned by the Budget and Finance Discipline Board, known by its French acronym BFDB. Session three looks at the specific risks faced by authorising officers within the budget execution chain.
Sessions four, five, and six then focused on internal control as a prevention tool, the legal concept of damage under Cameroonian public financial law, and the question of attributability determining who bears responsibility when financial misconduct occurs.
Part of a Nationwide Rollout
Valentin Lah Kouotou, National Coordinator of PAGFIP the programme supporting public finance reform in Cameroon confirmed that the Bamenda workshop is part of a phased national exercise.
A similar workshop has already been held in Douala for delegates from the Littoral and South Regions. After the North West and South West edition concludes, other regions of Cameroon will receive their own training. The programme will subsequently extend to mayors and magistrates in later phases.
The training workshop runs through June 12, 2026, at Ayaba Hotel, Bamenda. It is organised by CONSUPE the Supreme State Audit Office , for regional delegates of public administrations across the North West and South West Regions.
By Bamenjo Petronilla
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