Map of Cameroon | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide19891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023 | More stats

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Background: The former French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon merged in 1961 to form the present country. Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability which has permitted the development of agriculture roads and railways as well as a petroleum industry. Despite movement toward democratic reform political power remains firmly in the hands of an ethnic oligarchy.


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Location

Geographic coordinates

Map reference

Area

Land boundaries:

Coastline: 402 km

Maritime claims: Territorial sea:50 nm

Climate: varies with terrain from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north

Terrain: diverse with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north

Elevation

Natural resources: crude oil, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower potential

Land use: arable land: 13%; permanent crops: 2%; meadows and pastures 18%; forest and woodland 54%; other 13%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Irrigated land

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography
Note: sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa geoad2


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Population: 11,390,374 (July 1991), growth rate 2.7% (1991)

Nationality: noun--Cameroonian(s; adjective--Cameroonian

Ethnic groups: over 200 tribes of widely differing background; Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwestern Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1%

Languages: English and French (official), 24 major African language groups

Religions: indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 33%, Muslim 16%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate

Birth rate: 41 births/1000 population (1991)

Death rate: 15 deaths/1000 population (1991)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1000 population (1991)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: recent volcanic activity with release of poisonous gases; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 118 deaths/1000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth: 49 years male, 53 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate: 5.6 children born/woman (1991)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: 54% (male 66%, female 43%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Cameroon

Government type: unitary republic; multiparty presidential regime (opposition parties legalized 1990)

Capital: Yaounde

Administrative divisions: 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest

Dependent areas

Independence: 1 January 1960 (from UN trusteeship under French administration; formerly French Cameroon)

National holiday: National Day, 20 May (1972)

Constitution: 20 May 1972

Legal system: based on French civil law system, with common law influence; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: universal at age 21

Executive branch: Chief of State President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982; Head of Government interim Prime Minister Sadou HAYATOU (since 25 April 1991)

Legislative branch: Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force; paramilitary Gendarmerie

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-19, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, PCA, UDEAC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us: Ambassador Paul PONDI; Chancery at 2,349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20,008; telephone (202) 265-8,790 through 8,794; US--Ambassador Frances D. COOK; Embassy at Rue Nachtigal, Yaounde (mailing address is B. P. 817, Yaounde; telephone [237] 234,014; there is a US Consulate General in Douala

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia Cameroon CameroonCameroon

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Over the past decade the economy has registered a remarkable performance because of the development of an offshore oil industry. Real GDP growth annually averaged 10% from 1978 to 1985. In 1986 Cameroon had one of the highest levels of income per capita in tropical Africa, with oil revenues picking up the slack as growth in other sectors softened. Because of the sharp drop in oil prices, however, the economy experienced serious budgetary difficulties and balance-of-payments disequilibrium. Despite the recent upsurge in oil prices, Cameroon's economic outlook is troubled. Oil reserves currently being exploited will be depleted in the early 1990s, so ways must be found to boost agricultural and industrial exports in the medium term. The Sixth Cameroon Development Plan (1986-91) stresses balanced development and designates agriculture as the basis of the country's economic future.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita ppp

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: the agriculture and forestry sectors provide employment for the majority of the population, contributing nearly 25% to GDP and providing a high degree of self-sufficiency in staple foods; commercial and food crops include coffee, cocoa, timber, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, livestock, root starches

Industries: crude oil products, food processing, light consumer goods industries textiles, sawmills

Industrial production growth rate: - 6.4% (FY87; accounts for 30% of GDP

Labor force: NA; agriculture 74.4%, industry and transport 11.4%, other services 14.2% (1983; 50% of population of working age (15-64 years) (1985)

Unemployment rate: 25% (1990 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues $1.7 billion; expenditures $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA million (FY89)

Public debt

Taxes and other revenues

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June

Current account balance

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $2.1 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
Commodities: petroleum products 56%, coffee, cocoa, timber, manufactures
Partners: EC (particularly the French) about 50%, US 10%

Imports: $2.1 billion (c.i.f., 1990 est.)
Commodities: machines and electrical equipment, transport equipment, chemical products, consumer goods
Partners: France 41%, Germany 9%, US 4%

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $4.9 billion (December 1989 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1--256.54 (January 1991), 272.26 (1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988), 300.54 (1987), 346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)


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Electricity access

Electricity production

Electricity consumption

Electricity exports

Electricity imports

Electricity installed generating capacity

Electricity transmission distribution losses

Electricity generation sources

Petroleum

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones fixed lines

Telephones mobile cellular

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet country code

Internet users

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: $219 million, 1.7% of GDP (1990 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 60 total, 52 usable; 10 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m; 5 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 21 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Airports with paved runways

Airports with unpaved runways

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 2,090 km; of decreasing importance

Merchant marine: 2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 24,122 GRT/33,509 DWT

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: demarcation of international boundaries in Lake Chad, the lack of which has led to border incidents in the past, is completed and awaiting ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria; Nigerian proposals to reopen maritime boundary negotiations and redemarcate the entire land boundary have been rejected by Cameroon

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs