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Cameroon, with its population of 25.88 million (2019), is
located in western central Africa having 249 miles of coast on the Gulf of Guinea/Atlantic Ocean coastline known as the Bight of Biatra. Cameroon is further
bordered by Nigeria to its west, Chad to its north-east, the
Central African Republic to its east and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon
and the Republic of the Congo to its south. Slightly larger than
California, Cameroon is sometimes referred to as 'Africa in
Miniature' with golden beaches, tropical rainforests, lakes,
deserts, savannahs as well as volcanic mountain ranges and an
abundance of wildlife including lions and elephants. Cameroon gained its name from
what Portuguese settlers had named the River of Shrimp, Rio dos Camaroes, after
they reached the coast in 1472. In 1884 the land became a German colony, however
after Germany's defeat in World War 1 the then named Kamerun became a League of
Nations Mandate territory being split into British Cameroon and French Cameroon
in 1919. French Cameroon gained
independence from France on 1st January 1960 and, the following year, on 1st
October 1961, British Cameroon united with it to become the Federal Republic of
Cameroon under the stewardship of President Ahmadou Ahidjo, the leader of French
Cameroon who installed one party politics.
Today power rests in
the grip of President Paul Biya, formerly the Prime Minister of Cameroon from 1975 to 1982 under Ahmadou Ahidjo, who was first elected into presidential office on 6th November 1982 and who is now the second longest ruling president in Africa, the longest-ruling non-royal leader in the world and the oldest head-of-state in Africa. Cameroon is generally seen
as a stable country with this stability providing a platform for the development
of its infrastructure and inward investment, however there is a strong movement
in the former British Cameroon to break away and form the independent
Republic of Ambazonia. Indeed this was proclaimed in 1999 but has gained no
recognition either within and outside of Cameroon. The terrorist groups Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) are known to be active in the far north region of Cameroon and attacks have been carried out in the capital Yaounde in the summer of 2020 and further such attacks are threatened with Boko Haram denouncing Cameroon's involvement in the regional fight to counter them and their aims.
Cameroon is in 153rd place out of
189 countries and territories in 2019 when ranked in terms of life expectancy,
literacy, access to knowledge and the living standards of a country. Life
expectancy for a child in Cameroon is 58.92 years (2018), not helped by the
prevalence of HIV/AIDS where in 2020 a
staggering 350,000 have been orphaned by
AIDS. Many of these
orphaned children, along with others who escape poverty or family
breakdown, end up on the streets living through vending, begging
or stealing. For more about Cameroon, explore our Cameroon profile pages below.
Cameroon Profile: Volunteer in Cameroon
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon History
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Cameroon Profile: Life in Cameroon
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Children
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Street Children
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Images
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Malnutrition
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon AIDS
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Cameroon Profile: Yaounde Profile
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Cameroon Profile: Yaounde Airport
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Quiz
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Cameroon Profile: Child Sponsor Cameroon
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon Map
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Cameroon Profile: Cameroon News
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