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Republic of Cameroon
National name: République du
Cameroun
President: Paul Biya (1982)
Prime Minister: Ephraïm Inoni
(2004)
Current government officials
Land area: 181,251 sq mi (469,440 sq km);
total area: 183,567 sq mi (475,440 sq km)
Population (2008 est.): 18,467,692
(growth rate: 2.2%); birth rate: 34.5/1000; infant mortality rate:
64.5/1000; life expectancy: 53.3; density per sq km: 39
Capital:
Yaoundé, 1,395,200 (metro. area),
1,154,400 (city proper)
Largest city: Douala, 1,490,500
(metro. area), 1,274.300 (city proper)
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages:
French, English (both official); 24 major
African language groups
Ethnicity/race:
Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu
19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwest Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%,
other African 13%, non-African less than 1%
National Holiday:
Republic Day (National Day), May 20
Religions:
indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Islam
20%
Literacy rate: 67.2% (2006 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007
est.): $39.37 billion; per capita $2,100. Real growth rate:
3.3%. Inflation: 0.9%. Unemployment: 30% (2001 est.).
Arable land: 13%. Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, cotton,
rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber.
Labor force: 6.86 million; agriculture 70%, industry and
commerce 13%, other 17%. Industries: petroleum production and
refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer
goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair. Natural resources:
petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower. Exports:
$3.236 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): crude oil and petroleum products,
lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton. Imports:
$2.514 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery, electrical
equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food. Major trading
partners: Spain, Italy, UK, France, U.S., South Korea,
Netherlands, Nigeria, Belgium, China, Germany (2004).
Communications: Telephones: main lines
in use: 110,900 (2002); mobile cellular: 1.077 million (2003).
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2002).
Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet
hosts: 479 (2004). Internet users: 60,000 (2002); note:
Cameroon also had more than 100 cyber-cafes in 2001.
Transportation: Railways: total: 1,008
km (2004). Highways: total: 34,300 km; paved: 4,288 km;
unpaved: 30,012 km (1999 est.). Waterways: navigation mainly
on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2004). Ports and
harbors: Douala, Limboh Terminal. Airports: 47 (2004
est.).
International disputes: ICJ ruled in
2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but
the parties formed a Joint Border Commission, which continues to
meet regularly to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced
with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary,
starting in Lake Chad in the north; implementation of the ICJ ruling
on the Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the
Gulf of Guinea is impeded by imprecisely defined coordinates, the
unresolved Bakassi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between
Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the
Ntem River; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi
Peninsula, then agreed, but has yet to withdraw its forces while
much of the indigenous population opposes cession; only Nigeria and
Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify
the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger.
Major sources and definitions
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