CAMEROON Law and Practice Contributed by: Lynda Amadagana, Elise Ngo Nyobe, Cecile Bella and Kevin Djomgoue, Amadagana & Partners
• manage wastewater discharges, watercourse crossings and management of water bodies; and • manage mine tailings and solid and liquid waste such as used oil, rags soiled by hydro - carbons, etc. 3.2 Climate Change Legislation and Proposals Related to Mining There is no climate change legislation related to mining that has been adopted or is under dis - cussion. However, this is a major concern for Cameroon, which is a signatory to COP21 and other major international Conventions on climate change, and it is committed to the sustainable management of natural resources and adapta - tion and mitigation policies. 3.3 Sustainable Development Initiatives Related to Mining Several initiatives for the achievement of sus - tainable development objectives, notably meas - ures related to the fight against climate change, exist in Cameroon. These include: • reform of the normative and institutional forestry framework in order to align it with the requirements of sustainable management of forest resources in line with the resolutions adopted at the Rio de Janeiro summit in 1992; • the promulgation of new laws relating to envi - ronmental management (eg, the Framework Law No 1996/12 of 5 August 1996); • the creation of a Ministry of the Environment and Forestry; • the establishment of a forestry policy docu - ment and realisation of a forestry zoning plan for southern Cameroon; • the implementation of a National Environmen - tal Management Programme (PNGE);
• the launch of the Forest and Environment Sector Programme (FESP); and • the participation of Cameroon in the negotia - tions of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. 3.4 Energy-Transition Minerals Discussions are underway in Cameroon on increasing demand for so-called energy-transi - tion minerals such as cobalt, lithium, copper, and nickel (ie, more incentive measures for utilisation of electric vehicles). 4. Taxation of Mining and Exploration 4.1 Mining and Exploration Duties, Royalties and Taxes Mining exploration and exploitation in Cameroon is subject to the General Tax Code and to a spe - cific regime granting tax and customs advan - tages to mining companies. The General Tax Code requires mining compa - nies to pay the taxes and duties applicable to all companies, particularly corporate tax. In addi - tion, during the exploration phase, the mining company is required to pay specific taxes such as the fixed fee for the allocation of exploration permits. This fixed fee is based on the surface area of the requested exploration perimeter and the annual surface royalty is payable no later than January 31 of each year. During the exploitation period, the holder of the mining title is subject to a state concession fee at the beginning of each financial year. The cost of the royalty depends on the surface area of the mining title. However, an ad valorem tax will be paid on each mined resource.
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