Cameroon

Country Summary

2022 population pyramid

Introduction

Background

Cameroon resulted from the merger of former French and British Cameroon in the early 1960s. The country has enjoyed stability, permitting the development of agriculture, roads, railways, and a petroleum industry.

Geography

Area

total: 475,440 sq km

land: 472,710 sq km

water: 2,730 sq km

Climate

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

Natural resources

petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower

People and Society

Population

29,321,637 (2022 est.)

Ethnic groups

Bamileke-Bamu 24.3%, Beti/Bassa, Mbam 21.6%, Biu-Mandara 14.6%, Arab-Choa/Hausa/Kanuri 11%, Adamawa-Ubangi, 9.8%, Grassfields 7.7%, Kako, Meka/Pygmy 3.3%, Cotier/Ngoe/Oroko 2.7%, Southwestern Bantu 0.7%, foreign/other ethnic group 4.5% (2018 est.)

Languages

24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official)

Religions

Roman Catholic 38.3%, Protestant 25.5%, other Christian 6.9%, Muslim 24.4%, animist 2.2%, other 0.5%, none 2.2% (2018 est.)

Population growth rate

2.75% (2022 est.)

Government

Government type

presidential republic

Capital

name: Yaounde

Executive branch

chief of state: President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982)

head of government: Prime Minister Joseph Dion NGUTE (since 4 January 2019); Deputy Prime Minister Amadou ALI (since 2014)

Legislative branch

description: bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of:
Senate or Senat (100 seats; 70 members indirectly elected by regional councils and 30 appointed by the president; members serve 5-year terms)
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms)

Economy

Economic overview

largest CEMAC economy with many natural resources; recent political instability and terrorism reducing economic output; systemic corruption; poor property rights enforcement; increasing poverty in northern regions

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$94.94 billion (2020 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$3,600 (2020 est.)

Agricultural products

cassava, plantains, maize, oil palm fruit, taro, sugar cane, sorghum, tomatoes, bananas, vegetables

Industries

petroleum production and refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair

Exports

$7.73 billion (2019 est.)

Exports - partners

China 17%, Netherlands 14%, Italy 9%, United Arab Emirates 8%, India 7%, United States 6%, Belgium 6%, Spain 5%, France 5% (2019)

Exports - commodities

crude petroleum, cocoa beans, lumber, gold, natural gas, bananas (2019)

Imports

$9.09 billion (2019 est.)

Imports - partners

China 28%, Nigeria 15%, France 9%, Belgium 6% (2019)

Imports - commodities

crude petroleum, scrap vessels, rice, special purpose ships, packaged medicines (2019)

Exchange rates

Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar -


Page last updated: Wednesday, November 16, 2022