The average cost of credit in the CEMAC region fell to 10.99% in the second quarter of 2026 from 11.53% a year earlier, according to a Bank of Central African States report published on 22 October. Gabon bucked the trend with a 21.51% rate, up 144 basis points year on year.
The regional average declined by 54 basis points over the year and by 140 basis points from the first quarter. New lending still fell 6.03% year on year to CFAF 2,903.6 billion, although it increased 15.66% from the first three months of 2026.
Conditions eased sharply for small and medium-sized enterprises, whose average rate fell to 11.15% from 19.10% a year earlier. The rate for individuals was almost unchanged at 15.49%, while the rate for large companies rose to 10.37% from 7.45% in the second quarter of 2025.
Cameroon posted the lowest country average at 8.22%. The rate stood at 10% in Congo, 11.47% in Chad, 13.82% in Equatorial Guinea and 14.36% in the Central African Republic. Congo recorded a 778-basis-point annual decline.
Short-term credit accounted for 76.01% of new financing in the region. Medium-term loans represented 12.86% and long-term loans 11.13%.