The Cameroonian Electricity Company (Socadel), created from the transformation of Eneo Cameroon, has established its first management team following its inaugural board meeting, presided over by the Minister of Water and Energy. This new leadership arrives at a critical time, as the Cameroonian electricity sector faces major financial and technical challenges.
Antoine Ntsimi, former Minister of Finance, economist, and banker, has been appointed Chairman of the Board. His extensive experience in complex economic and financial matters is seen as an asset to support the company's new phase of governance. Ntsimi previously served as President of the Commission of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC). He played a key role in the devaluation of the CFA franc in 1994 while he was Minister of Finance.
Oumarou Hamandjoda has been appointed General Manager, succeeding Amine Homman Ludiye, who was appointed in 2023. Hamandjoda, who until now was Deputy General Manager of Eneo Cameroon, is a recognized expert in the energy sector in Cameroon, with over twenty years of experience. He has held significant positions within The AES Corporation and served as a technical advisor to the Presidency of the Republic on matters of energy, water, and structural projects. He has also worked at the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and is a tenured professor at the National Advanced School of Engineering in Yaoundé.
Jean Basile Ekobena has been appointed Deputy General Manager. An energy economist engineer, he has over thirty years of experience in the Cameroonian electricity sector. He has spent most of his career within Sonel, then Eneo Cameroon, where he held various positions of responsibility, including Special Advisor to the General Manager.
During the installation of this new team, the Minister of Water and Energy, Gaston Eloundou Essomba, emphasized the need for a "breakthrough" in a sector where expectations for performance and quality of service are high.
The new management team takes office in a challenging context, marked by significant financial and technical tensions. In January 2026, the company reported a monthly deficit of approximately 13 billion FCFA, with an estimated cumulative debt of 177 billion FCFA. This situation impacts the quality of service, with recurrent power outages and supply instability affecting households and businesses.
To improve the situation, the government plans to refinance Eneo's commitments through a local banking syndicate, with the aim of generating estimated monthly financial gains of 2.5 billion FCFA. An action plan has been defined, focused on renegotiating the debt, settling unpaid invoices from public entities, and reducing operating costs. The challenge for Ntsimi, Hamandjoda, and Ekobena will be to meet the pressing expectations for improved service, an essential condition for the competitiveness of the Cameroonian economy.
