The Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic

Unitary state

A unitary state is a state governed as one single unit in which the central government is supreme and any administrative divisions exercise only powers that their central government chooses to delegate...

 located in Middle Africa. Cameroon borders Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

 to the west; Chad

Chad

Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...

 to the northeast; the Central African Republic

Central African Republic

The Central African Republic , is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the north east, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about ,...

 to the east; and Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...

, Gabon

Gabon

Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...

, and the Republic of the Congo

Republic of the Congo

The Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...

 to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the Bight of Bonny

Bight of Bonny

The Bight of Bonny is a bight off the West African coast, in the easternmost part of the Gulf of Guinea...

, part of the Gulf of Guinea

Gulf of Guinea

The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean between Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian is in the gulf....

 and the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

. The country is called "Africa in miniature

Tourism in Cameroon

Tourism in Cameroon is a growing but relatively minor industry. Since the 1970s, the government of Cameroon has cultivated the industry by creating a ministry of tourism and by encouraging investment by airlines, hotels, and travel agencies. The government describes the country as "Africa in...

" for its geological and cultural diversity. Natural features include beaches, deserts, mountains, rainforests, and savannas. The highest point is Mount Cameroon

Mount Cameroon

Mount Cameroon is an active volcano in Cameroon near the Gulf of Guinea. Mount Cameroon is also known as Cameroon Mountain or Fako or by its native name Mongo ma Ndemi ....

 in the southwest, and the largest cities are Douala

Douala

Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country...

, Yaoundé

Yaoundé

-Transportation:Yaoundé Nsimalen International Airport is a major civilian hub, while nearby Yaoundé Airport is used by the military. Railway lines run west to the port city of Douala and north to N'Gaoundéré. Many bus companies operate from the city; particularly in the Nsam and Mvan neighborhoods...

, and Garoua

Garoua

Garoua is the capital of the North Province of Cameroon, lying on the Benue River. The city had 235,996 inhabitants at the 2005 Census, and is an important river port.- Overview :...

. Cameroon is home to over 200 different ethnic and linguistic groups. The country is well known for its native styles of music, particularly makossa

Makossa

Makossa is a type of music that is most popular in urban areas in Cameroon. It is similar to soukous, except that it includes strong bass rhythm and a prominent horn section. Makossa, which means " dance" in Duala, originated from a type of Duala dance called kossa, with significant influences...

 and bikutsi

Bikutsi

Bikutsi is a musical genre from Cameroon. It developed from the traditional styles of the Beti, or Ewondo, people, who live around the city of Yaounde. It was popular in the middle of the 20th century in West Africa...

, and for its successful national football team

Cameroon national football team

The Cameroon national football team, nicknamed Les Lions Indomptables , is controlled by the Fédération Camerounaise de Football and is Africa's most successful side in FIFA world cup; having qualified for the FIFA World Cup six times – in 1982, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2010– more than any...

. English and French are the official languages.

Early inhabitants of the territory included the Sao civilisation

Sao civilisation

The Sao were an African civilisation that flourished from ca. the 6th century to as late as the 15th century. The Sao lived by the Chari River south of Lake Chad in territory that would later be part of Cameroon and Chad. They are the earliest people to have left clear traces of their presence in...

 around Lake Chad

Lake Chad

Lake Chad is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Africa, whose size has varied over the centuries. According to the Global Resource Information Database of the United Nations Environment Programme, it shrank as much as 95% from about 1963 to 1998; yet it also states that "the 2007 ...

 and the Baka

Baka (Cameroon and Gabon)

The Baka, known in the Congo as Bayaka , are an ethnic group inhabiting the southeastern rainforests of Cameroon, northern Republic of Congo, northern Gabon, and southwestern Central African Republic. They are sometimes called a subgroup of the Twa, but the two peoples are not closely related...

 hunter-gatherers in the southeastern rainforest. Portuguese explorers reached the coast in the 15th century and named the area Rio dos Camarões ("River of Prawns"), the name from which Cameroon derives. Fulani

Fula people

Fula people or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...

 soldiers founded the Adamawa Emirate

Adamawa Emirate

The Adamawa Emirate is a traditional state located in Fumbina, what is now the Adamawa State, Nigeria, and previously also in the three northern provinces of Cameroon . It was founded by Modibo Adama, a commander of Sheikh Usman dan Fodio, the man who began the Fulani jihad in 1809...

 in the north in the 19th century, and various ethnic groups of the west and northwest established powerful chiefdoms and fondoms

Fon (Cameroon)

A fon is a chieftain or king of a region of Cameroon, especially among the Tikar and Bamiléké peoples of the Bamenda grassfields . Though once independent rulers, most fons were brought under the German rule or military subjugation during the colonial period...

. Cameroon became a German

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

 colony

Colonialism

Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...

 in 1884. After World War I, the territory was divided between France

French Third Republic

The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...

 and Britain

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

 as League of Nations mandate

League of Nations mandate

A League of Nations mandate was a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I, or the legal instruments that contained the internationally agreed-upon terms for administering the territory on behalf of the League...

s. The Union des Populations du Cameroun

Union of the Peoples of Cameroon

The Union of the Peoples of Cameroon is a political party in Cameroon.-History:UPC was founded on April 10, 1948, at a meeting in the bar Chez Sierra in Bassa. 12 men assisted the founding meeting, including Charles Assalé, Léonard Bouli, and Guillaume Bagal. The majority of the participants were...

 political party advocated independence but was outlawed in the 1950s. It waged war on French and Cameroonian forces until 1971. In 1960, French Cameroun

Cameroun

Cameroun was a French and British mandate territory in central Africa, now constituting the majority of the territory of the Republic of Cameroon....

 became independent as the Republic of Cameroun under President Ahmadou Ahidjo

Ahmadou Ahidjo

Ahmadou Babatoura Ahidjo was the first President of Cameroon from 1960 until 1982.-Early life:Ahidjo was born in Garoua, a major river port along the Benue River in northern Cameroun, which was at the time a French mandate territory...

. The southern part

Southern Cameroons

Southern Cameroons was the southern part of the British Mandate territory of Cameroons in West Africa. Since 1961 it is part of the Republic of Cameroon, where it makes up the Northwest Province and Southwest Province...

 of British Cameroons

Cameroons

British Cameroons was a British Mandate territory in West Africa, now divided between Nigeria and Cameroon.The area of present-day Cameroon was claimed by Germany as a protectorate during the "Scramble for Africa" at the end of the 19th century...

 merged with it in 1961 to form the Federal Republic

Federal republic

A federal republic is a federation of states with a republican form of government. A federation is the central government. The states in a federation also maintain the federation...

 of Cameroon. The country was renamed the United Republic

Unitary state

A unitary state is a state governed as one single unit in which the central government is supreme and any administrative divisions exercise only powers that their central government chooses to delegate...

 of Cameroon in 1972 and the Republic of Cameroon in 1984.

Compared with other African countries, Cameroon enjoys political and social stability. This has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, railways, and large petroleum and timber industries. Nevertheless, large numbers of Cameroonians live in poverty as subsistence farmers. Power lies firmly in the hands of the president, Paul Biya

Paul Biya

Paul Biya is a Cameroonian politician who has been the President of Cameroon since 6 November 1982. A native of Cameroon's south, Biya rose rapidly as a bureaucrat under President Ahmadou Ahidjo in the 1960s, serving as Secretary-General of the Presidency from 1968 to 1975 and then as Prime...

, and his Cameroon People's Democratic Movement

Cameroon People's Democratic Movement

The Cameroon People's Democratic Movement is the ruling political party in Cameroon.-History:Previously known as the Cameroon National Union, which had dominated Cameroon politics since independence in 1960, it was renamed in 1985...

 party, and corruption

Political corruption

Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...

 is widespread. The Anglophone

Anglophone Cameroonian

Anglophone Cameroonians are the people of various cultural backgrounds who hail from the English-speaking provinces of Cameroon...

 community has grown increasingly alienated from the government, and Anglophone politicians have called for greater decentralisation and even the secession of the former British-governed territories.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Cameroon:

General reference

• Pronunciation
  International Phonetic Alphabet
  The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic...
  
  :
• Common English country name: Cameroon
  Cameroon
  Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
  
  
• Official English country name: The Republic of Cameroon
• Common endonym(s):
• Official endonym(s):
• Adjectival(s): Cameroonian
• Demonym(s):
• Etymology
  Etymology
  Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
  
  : Name of Cameroon
• International rankings of Cameroon
  International rankings of Cameroon
  - International rankings :...
  
  
• ISO country codes: CM, CMR, 120
• ISO region codes: See ISO 3166-2:CM
  ISO 3166-2:CM
  ISO 3166-2:CM is the entry for Cameroon in ISO 3166-2, part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , which defines codes for the names of the principal subdivisions of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1.Currently for Cameroon, ISO 3166-2 codes are...
  
  
• Internet
  Internet
  The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
  
   country code top-level domain
  Country code top-level domain
  A country code top-level domain is an Internet top-level domain generally used or reserved for a country, a sovereign state, or a dependent territory....
  
  : .cm
  .cm
  .cm is the country code top-level domain for Cameroon.The official registrar for .cm domains is Netcom.cm, based in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon. Netcom.cm Sarl was founded in early 2008 as a partner of ANTIC, the Information Technology Regulator for Cameroon. On October 15, 2008, NETCOM.cm...
  
  

Geography of Cameroon

• Cameroon is: a country
• Location:
  • Southern Hemisphere
    Southern Hemisphere
    The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earth that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere"...
    
     and Eastern Hemisphere
    Eastern Hemisphere
    The Eastern Hemisphere, also Eastern hemisphere or eastern hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that is east of the Prime Meridian and west of 180° longitude. It is also used to refer to Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australasia, vis-à-vis the Western Hemisphere, which includes...
    
    
  • Africa
    Africa
    Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
    
    
    • Middle Africa
    • West Africa
      West Africa
      West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
      
      
  • Time zone
    Time zone
    A time zone is a region on Earth that has a uniform standard time for legal, commercial, and social purposes. In order for the same clock time to always correspond to the same portion of the day as the Earth rotates , different places on the Earth need to have different clock times...
    
    : West Africa Time
    West Africa Time
    West Africa Time, or WAT, is a time zone used in west-central Africa . The zone is one hour ahead of UTC , which makes it the same as Central European Time...
    
     (UTC+01)
  • Extreme points of Cameroon
    • High: Fako on Mount Cameroon
      Mount Cameroon
      Mount Cameroon is an active volcano in Cameroon near the Gulf of Guinea. Mount Cameroon is also known as Cameroon Mountain or Fako or by its native name Mongo ma Ndemi ....
      
       4040 m (13,255 ft)
    • Low: Bight of Bonny
      Bight of Bonny
      The Bight of Bonny is a bight off the West African coast, in the easternmost part of the Gulf of Guinea...
      
       0 m
  • Land boundaries: 4,591 km

 Nigeria 1,690 km

 Chad 1,094 km

 Central African Republic 797 km

 Republic of the Congo 523 km

 Gabon 298 km

 Equatorial Guinea 189 km

• Coastline: Gulf of Guinea
  Gulf of Guinea
  The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean between Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian is in the gulf....
  
   402 km
• Population of Cameroon: 17,795,000(2005) - 58th most populous country
• Area of Cameroon: 475442 square kilometres (183,569.2 sq mi) - 53rd largest country
• Atlas of Cameroon

Environment of Cameroon

• Climate of Cameroon
• Environmental issues in Cameroon
• Ecoregions in Cameroon
• Renewable energy in Cameroon
• Geology of Cameroon
• Protected areas of Cameroon
  • Biosphere reserves in Cameroon
  • National parks of Cameroon
• Wildlife of Cameroon
  Wildlife of Cameroon
  The wildlife of Cameroon is composed of its flora and fauna.The Cameroonian Highlands forests extend across the Cameroon Highlands, covering an area of in eastern Nigeria and western Cameroon...
  
  
  • Flora of Cameroon
  • Fauna of Cameroon
    • Birds of Cameroon
    • Mammals of Cameroon

Natural geographic features of Cameroon

• Glaciers in Cameroon: none
• Islands of Cameroon
• Lakes of Cameroon
• Mountains of Cameroon
  • Volcanoes in Cameroon
• Rivers of Cameroon
  • Waterfalls of Cameroon
• Valleys of Cameroon
• World Heritage Sites in Cameroon

Ecoregions of Cameroon

Main article: Ecoregions in Cameroon

Administrative divisions of Cameroon

Main article: Administrative divisions of Cameroon

• Provinces of Cameroon
  Provinces of Cameroon
  The Republic of Cameroon is divided into ten regions:In 2008, the President of the Republic of Cameroon, President Paul Biya signed decrees abolishing "Provinces" and replacing them with "Regions". Hence, all of the country's ten provinces are now known as Regions.Most of these provinces were...
  
  
  • Divisions of Cameroon

Municipalities of Cameroon

• Capital of Cameroon: Yaoundé
• Cities of Cameroon

Government and politics of Cameroon

Main article: Government of Cameroon and Politics of Cameroon

Politics of Cameroon

Politics of Cameroon takes place in a framework of a unitary presidential republic, whereby the President of Cameroon is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government...

• Form of government
  Form of government
  A form of government, or form of state governance, refers to the set of political institutions by which a government of a state is organized. Synonyms include "regime type" and "system of government".-Empirical and conceptual problems:...
  
  : unitary presidential
  Presidential system
  A presidential system is a system of government where an executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislature, to which it is not responsible and which cannot, in normal circumstances, dismiss it....
  
   republic
  Republic
  A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
  
  
• Capital of Cameroon: Yaoundé

• Elections in Cameroon
  Elections in Cameroon
  Elections in Cameroon gives information on election and election results in Cameroon.Cameroon elects, on a national level, a head of state - the president - and a legislature. The president is elected for a seven year term by the people; a two-term limit on the office was removed through a...
  
  
  • (specific elections)
• Political parties in Cameroon
• Political scandals of Cameroon
• Taxation in Cameroon

Executive branch of the government of Cameroon

• Head of state
  Head of State
  A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
  
  : President of Cameroon,
• Head of government
  Head of government
  Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...
  
  : Prime Minister of Cameroon
  Prime Minister of Cameroon
  Under the current constitution of Cameroon, the Prime Minister of Cameroon is a relatively powerless executive. While the Prime Minister is officially appointed to be the head of government, the President retains most of the executive power and can fire the Prime Minister at will.-History:The...
  
  ,
• Cabinet of Cameroon

Legislative branch of the government of Cameroon

• Parliament of Cameroon (bicameral)
  • Upper house
    Upper house
    An upper house, often called a senate, is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house; a legislature composed of only one house is described as unicameral.- Possible specific characteristics :...
    
    : Senate of Cameroon
  • Lower house
    Lower house
    A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house.Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide the lower house has come to wield more power...
    
    : House of Commons of Cameroon

Judicial branch of the government of Cameroon

• Supreme Court of Cameroon
  Supreme Court of Cameroon
  The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in Cameroon. As defined in Article V of the Constitution of Cameroon, the Supreme Court is above the courts of appeal and the tribunals. It is nominally independent of the executive and legislative branches of government, subject only to the oversight...
  
  

Foreign relations of Cameroon

• Diplomatic missions in Cameroon
• Diplomatic missions of Cameroon
  Diplomatic missions of Cameroon
  This is a list of diplomatic missions of Cameroon, excluding honorary consulates. Cameroon has an extensive network of diplomatic missions, reflecting strong ties and non-contentious standing with other African states, its special relationships with France, the United States and China, and its...
  
  

International organization membership

The Republic of Cameroon is a member of:

• African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP)
• African Development Bank Group (AfDB)
• African Union
  African Union
  The African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
  
   (AU)
• Commonwealth of Nations
  Commonwealth of Nations
  The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
  
  
• Conference des Ministres des Finances des Pays de la Zone Franc (FZ)
• Development Bank of Central African States (BDEAC)
• Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC)
• Food and Agriculture Organization
  Food and Agriculture Organization
  The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...
  
   (FAO)
• Group of 77
  Group of 77
  The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but the organization has...
  
   (G77)
• International Atomic Energy Agency
  International Atomic Energy Agency
  The International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. The IAEA was established as an autonomous organization on 29 July 1957...
  
   (IAEA)
• International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
  International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
  The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development is one of five institutions that compose the World Bank Group. The IBRD is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by World War II. Now, its mission has expanded to fight...
  
   (IBRD)
• International Chamber of Commerce
  International Chamber of Commerce
  The International Chamber of Commerce is the largest, most representative business organization in the world. Its hundreds of thousands of member companies in over 130 countries have interests spanning every sector of private enterprise....
  
   (ICC)
• International Civil Aviation Organization
  International Civil Aviation Organization
  The International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...
  
   (ICAO)
• International Criminal Court
  International Criminal Court
  The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
  
   (ICCt) (signatory)
• International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)
• International Development Association
  International Development Association
  The International Development Association , is the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries. It complements the World Bank's other lending arm — the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development — which serves middle-income countries with capital investment and...
  
   (IDA)
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
  International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
  The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is a humanitarian institution that is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement along with the ICRC and 186 distinct National Societies...
  
   (IFRCS)
• International Finance Corporation
  International Finance Corporation
  The International Finance Corporation promotes sustainable private sector investment in developing countries.IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States....
  
   (IFC)
• International Fund for Agricultural Development
  International Fund for Agricultural Development
  The International Fund for Agricultural Development , a specialized agency of the United Nations, was established as an international financial institution in 1977 as one of the major outcomes of the 1974 World Food Conference. IFAD is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries...
  
   (IFAD)
• International Labour Organization
  International Labour Organization
  The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...
  
   (ILO)
• International Maritime Organization
  International Maritime Organization
  The International Maritime Organization , formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization , was established in Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959...
  
   (IMO)
• International Mobile Satellite Organization
  International Mobile Satellite Organization
  The International Mobile Satellite Organization is the intergovernmental organization that oversees certain public satellite safety and security communication services provided via the Inmarsat satellites...
  
   (IMSO)
• International Monetary Fund
  International Monetary Fund
  The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
  
   (IMF)
• International Olympic Committee
  International Olympic Committee
  The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
  
   (IOC)
• International Organization for Migration
  International Organization for Migration
  The International Organization for Migration is an intergovernmental organization. It was initially established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration to help resettle people displaced by World War II....
  
   (IOM)
• International Organization for Standardization
  International Organization for Standardization
  The International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO, is an international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on February 23, 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary, industrial and commercial...
  
   (ISO) (correspondent)

• International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
  International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
  The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide which was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and to prevent and alleviate human...
  
   (ICRM)
• International Telecommunication Union
  International Telecommunication Union
  The International Telecommunication Union is the specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for information and communication technologies...
  
   (ITU)
• International Telecommunications Satellite Organization
  International Telecommunications Satellite Organization
  The International Telecommunications Satellite Organization is an intergovernmental organisation charged with overseeing the public service obligations of Intelsat.-External links:*...
  
   (ITSO)
• International Trade Union Confederation
  International Trade Union Confederation
  The International Trade Union Confederation is the world's largest trade union federation. It was formed on November 1, 2006 out of the merger of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the World Confederation of Labour...
  
   (ITUC)
• Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)
• Islamic Development Bank
  Islamic Development Bank
  The Islamic Development Bank is a multilateral development financing institution located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It was founded by the first conference of Finance Ministers of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference , convened 23 Dhu'l Qa'dah 1393 AH.The bank officially began its activities on...
  
   (IDB)
• Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
  Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
  The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency is a member organization of the World Bank Group that offers political risk insurance. It was established to promote foreign direct investment into developing countries. MIGA was founded in 1988 with a capital base of $1 billion and is headquartered in...
  
   (MIGA)
• Nonaligned Movement (NAM)
• Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF)
• Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)
• Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
• Permanent Court of Arbitration
  Permanent Court of Arbitration
  The Permanent Court of Arbitration , is an international organization based in The Hague in the Netherlands.-History:The court was established in 1899 as one of the acts of the first Hague Peace Conference, which makes it the oldest institution for international dispute resolution.The creation of...
  
   (PCA)
• United Nations
  United Nations
  The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
  
   (UN)
• United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
  United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
  The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development was established in 1964 as a permanent intergovernmental body. It is the principal organ of the United Nations General Assembly dealing with trade, investment, and development issues....
  
   (UNCTAD)
• United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
• United Nations Industrial Development Organization
  United Nations Industrial Development Organization
  The United Nations Industrial Development Organization , French/Spanish acronym ONUDI, is a specialized agency in the United Nations system, headquartered in Vienna, Austria...
  
   (UNIDO)
• Universal Postal Union
  Universal Postal Union
  The Universal Postal Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration , the Postal Operations Council and the...
  
   (UPU)
• World Confederation of Labour
  World Confederation of Labour
  The World Confederation of Labour was an international labour organization founded in 1920 and based in Europe. Totalitarian governments of the 1930s repressed the federation and imprisoned many of its leaders, limiting operations until the end of World War II...
  
   (WCL)
• World Customs Organization
  World Customs Organization
  The World Customs Organization is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. With its worldwide membership, the WCO is recognized as the voice of the global customs community...
  
   (WCO)
• World Federation of Trade Unions
  World Federation of Trade Unions
  The World Federation of Trade Unions was established in 1945 to replace the International Federation of Trade Unions. Its mission was to bring together trade unions across the world in a single international organization, much like the United Nations...
  
   (WFTU)
• World Health Organization
  World Health Organization
  The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
  
   (WHO)
• World Intellectual Property Organization
  World Intellectual Property Organization
  The World Intellectual Property Organization is one of the 17 specialized agencies of the United Nations. WIPO was created in 1967 "to encourage creative activity, to promote the protection of intellectual property throughout the world"....
  
   (WIPO)
• World Meteorological Organization
  World Meteorological Organization
  The World Meteorological Organization is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 189 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization , which was founded in 1873...
  
   (WMO)
• World Tourism Organization
  World Tourism Organization
  The World Tourism Organization , based in Madrid, Spain, is a United Nations agency dealing with questions relating to tourism. It compiles the World Tourism rankings. The World Tourism Organization is a significant global body, concerned with the collection and collation of statistical information...
  
   (UNWTO)
• World Trade Organization
  World Trade Organization
  The World Trade Organization is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on January 1, 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade , which commenced in 1948...
  
   (WTO)

Law and order in Cameroon

Main article: Law of Cameroon

• Capital punishment in Cameroon
• Constitution of Cameroon
  Constitution of Cameroon
  The Constitution of Cameroon is the supreme law of the Republic of Cameroon. The document consists of a preamble and 13 Parts, each divided into Articles...
  
  
• Crime in Cameroon
• Human rights in Cameroon
  Human rights in Cameroon
  Human rights in Cameroon are addressed in the constitution. However, the 2009 Human Rights Report by the United States Department of State noted concerns in regards to election irregularities, security forces torture and arbitrary arrests.-Issues:...
  
  
  • LGBT rights in Cameroon
  • Freedom of religion in Cameroon
    Freedom of religion in Cameroon
    The Constitution of Cameroon provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respected this right in practice. Government policy contributes to the generally free practice of religion. There were no reports of societal abuses and discrimination based on religious belief or practice...
    
    
• Law enforcement in Cameroon
  Law enforcement in Cameroon
  -Sources:# World Police Encyclopedia, ed. by Dilip K. Das & Michael Palmiotto published by Taylor & Francis. 2004,# World Encyclopedia of Police Forces and Correctional Systems,second edition, 2006 by Gale....
  
  

Military of Cameroon

Main article: Military of Cameroon

Military of Cameroon

The Cameroonian Armed Forces generally has been an apolitical force where civilian control of the military predominates. Traditional dependence on the French defense capability, although reduced, continues to be the case as French military advisers remain closely involved in preparing the...

• Command
  • Commander-in-chief
    Commander-in-Chief
    A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
    
    :
    • Ministry of Defence of Cameroon
• Forces
  • Army of Cameroon
  • Navy of Cameroon
  • Air Force of Cameroon
  • Special forces of Cameroon
• Military history of Cameroon
• Military ranks of Cameroon

History of Cameroon

Main article: History of Cameroon

History of Cameroon

This article documents the history of Cameroon.-Early history:The earliest inhabitants of Cameroon were probably the Baka . They still inhabit the forests of the south and east provinces. Bantu speakers originating in the Cameroonian highlands were among the first groups to move out before other...

, Timeline of the history of Cameroon, and Current events of Cameroon

• Economic history of Cameroon
• Military history of Cameroon

Culture of Cameroon

Main article: Culture of Cameroon

Culture of Cameroon

-Holidays:Notable holidays in Cameroon include:Christian: Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Easter MondayMuslim: 'Id al-Fitr and 'Id al-AdhaMain holidaysDateEnglish NameJanuary 1New Year's DayFebruary 11National Youth DayMay 1Labor Day...

• Architecture of Cameroon
• Cuisine of Cameroon
  Cuisine of Cameroon
  Cameroonian cuisine is one of the most varied in Africa due to its location on the crossroads between the north, west, and centre of the continent; added to this is the profound influence of French food, a legacy of the colonial era....
  
  
• Ethnic minorities in Cameroon
• Festivals in Cameroon
• Humor in Cameroon
• Languages of Cameroon
  Languages of Cameroon
  Cameroon is home to 230 languages. These include 55 Afro-Asiatic languages, two Nilo-Saharan languages, and 173 Niger–Congo languages. This latter group is divided into one West Atlantic language , 32 Adamawa-Ubangui languages, and 142 Benue–Congo languages .English and French are official...
  
  
• Media in Cameroon
• National symbols of Cameroon
  • Coat of arms of Cameroon
  • Flag of Cameroon
    Flag of Cameroon
    The national flag of Cameroon was adopted in its present form on 20 May 1975 after Cameroon became a unitary state. It is a vertical tricolor of green, red and yellow, defaced with a five-pointed star in its center...
    
    
  • National anthem of Cameroon
• People of Cameroon
• Prostitution in Cameroon
• Public holidays in Cameroon
  Public holidays in Cameroon
  -Movable holidays:The following holidays are public holidays but the date on which each occurs varies, according to its corresponding calendar, and thus has no set date. In order in which they occur:...
  
  
• Records of Cameroon
• Religion in Cameroon
  Religion in Cameroon
  Christianity and Islam are the two main religions in Cameroon. Christian churches and Muslim centres of various denominations operate freely throughout Cameroon. Approximately 70 percent of the population is at least nominally Christian, 21 percent is nominally Muslim and 6 percent practise...
  
  
  • Buddhism in Cameroon
  • Christianity in Cameroon
  • Hinduism in Cameroon
  • Islam in Cameroon
    Islam in Cameroon
    Muslims comprise roughly 24 percent of the 21 million inhabitants in the African country of Cameroon. The Fulani, a pastoral nomadic group, spread Islam in early 19th century West Africa largely through commercial activity and Sufi brotherhoods . In the northern provinces, the locally dominant...
    
    
  • Judaism in Cameroon
  • Sikhism in Cameroon
• World Heritage Sites in Cameroon

Art in Cameroon

• Art in Cameroon
• Cinema of Cameroon
• Literature of Cameroon
• Music of Cameroon
  Music of Cameroon
  The best-known Music of the Cameroon is makossa, a popular style that has gained fans across Africa, and its related dance craze bikutsi.The pirogue sailors of Douala are known for a kind of singing called ngoso, which has evolved into a kind of modern music accompanied by zanza, balafon and...
  
  
• Television in Cameroon
• Theatre in Cameroon

Sports in Cameroon

Main article: Sports in Cameroon

• Football in Cameroon
  Football in Cameroon
  The most popular sport in Cameroon is clearly football. The national team is traditionally one of the strongest teams on the African continent. They have participated in the World Cup 5 times, and in 1990 they reached the quarter-finals. It took extra time before England won the game 3-2. They...
  
  
• Cameroon at the Olympics
  Cameroon at the Olympics
  Cameroon first participated at the Olympic Games in 1964, and has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympic Games since then. The nation withdrew from the 1976 Summer Olympics after three days of competition, to join the broad African boycott in response to the participation of New Zealand,...
  
  

Economy and infrastructure of Cameroon

Main article: Economy of Cameroon

Economy of Cameroon

For a quarter-century following independence, Cameroon was one of the most prosperous countries in Africa. The drop in commodity prices for its principal exports —petroleum, cocoa, coffee, and cotton — in the mid-1980s, combined with an overvalued currency and economic mismanagement,...

• Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 92nd (ninety-second)

• Agriculture in Cameroon
  Agriculture in Cameroon
  -Overview:Agriculture was the main source of growth and foreign exchange until 1978 when oil production replaced it as the cornerstone of growth for the formal economy. In 2004, agriculture contributed 44 percent to GDP. Agricultural development and productivity declined from neglect during the oil...
  
  
• Banking in Cameroon
  • National Bank of Cameroon
• Communications in Cameroon
  Communications in Cameroon
  Telephones - main lines in use:130,700 Telephones - mobile cellular:4.536 million Telephone system:general assessment:...
  
  
  • Internet in Cameroon
• Companies of Cameroon
• Currency of Cameroon
  Currency
  In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...
  
  : Franc
  Central African CFA franc
  The Central African CFA franc is the currency of six independent states in central Africa, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. CFA stands for Coopération financière en Afrique centrale...
  
  
  • ISO 4217
    ISO 4217
    ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Standards Organization, which delineates currency designators, country codes , and references to minor units in three tables:* Table A.1 – Current currency & funds code list...
    
    : XAF
    Central African CFA franc
    The Central African CFA franc is the currency of six independent states in central Africa, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. CFA stands for Coopération financière en Afrique centrale...
    
    
• Economic history of Cameroon
• Energy in Cameroon
  Energy in Cameroon
  Energy in Cameroon is a growing industry with tremendous potential, especially with the hydroelectric industry.-Oil:Cameroon began off shore oil production in 1977. Annual production has gradually fallen since 1985, and the decline is expected to continue as existing reserves are depleted. Output...
  
  
  • Energy policy of Cameroon
  • Oil industry in Cameroon
• Health care in Cameroon
• Mining in Cameroon
  Mining in Cameroon
  -Cameroon Overview:Cameroon has a total area of approximately 475 thousand square kilometers, a coastline of some 400 kilometers, and a population approaching 19 million people.- Mining History :As of April 2008, Cameroon has no industrial mining history...
  
  
• Cameroon Stock Exchange
• Tourism in Cameroon
  Tourism in Cameroon
  Tourism in Cameroon is a growing but relatively minor industry. Since the 1970s, the government of Cameroon has cultivated the industry by creating a ministry of tourism and by encouraging investment by airlines, hotels, and travel agencies. The government describes the country as "Africa in...
  
  
• Transport in Cameroon
  Transport in Cameroon
  - Railways :Railways in Cameroon are operated by Camrail, a subsidiary of French investment group Bolloré. As of 2008, the country had an estimated 987 km of gauge track....
  
  
  • Airports in Cameroon
  • Rail transport in Cameroon
    Rail transport in Cameroon
    Rail transport in Cameroon is primarily operated by Camrail, a subsidiary of Comazar.- Infrastructure :There are plans to extend from Mbalmayo to Bangui in the Central African Republic. http://allafrica.com/stories/201009240333.html...
    
    
  • Roads in Cameroon
• Water supply and sanitation in Cameroon

See also

• Index of Cameroon-related articles
• List of Cameroon-related topics
• List of international rankings
• Member state of the Commonwealth of Nations
• Member state of the United Nations
• Outline of Africa
  Outline of Africa
  The following outline provides an overview of and topical guide to the continent Africa:Africa – world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia.-Geography of Africa:* Atlas of Africa* List of cities in Africa...
  
  
• Outline of geography
  Outline of geography
  The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to geography:Geography – science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth.- Geography is :...
  
  

External links

• Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon
• Prime Minister's Office
• National Assembly of Cameroon
• CRTV — Cameroon Radio Television