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Business in Cameroon) - The Cameroonian government announced this week the upcoming launch of “ePhyto”, an online platform for the issuance of phytosanitary certificates for imported and exported goods.

This tool, according to the Single Window of Foreign Trade (Guce), allows countries to exchange certificates among themselves through their national systems or through a generic system available to those who do not have one. Guce explains that the platform was designed after the insistent demand of the port's partners, particularly those in the cocoa-coffee and timber sectors.

“The certificate is a real passport for plants and plant products moving in international trade,” Guce said. Before being digitized, the document was -in the past- sent to the exporter, who had to print it before presenting it to the phytosanitary service for signature, which is a cumbersome procedure. "With the digitization reform, we have implemented the electronic signature. This makes it easier for operators, who no longer need to go to the police stations for the physical signature," we learn.

However, economic operators have raised the issue of the destination, which can no longer be changed with this new tool. Indeed, with ePhyto, the certificate will be available at the national organization of plant protection (NPPO) of the place of destination as soon as it is issued. This leaves no room for change.

"Operators want to continue to have the possibility to change the final destination because the destination is sometimes provided by traders only after the departure of the goods," it is explained. Operators are therefore advised to inform their business partners of the destination to avoid any inconvenience.

Source: Business in Cameroon