Help building the largest human-edited directory of the web Suggest URL - Open Directory Project - Become an editor

directopedia.org uses links and structure from dmoz Open Directory Project.
The contents has been generating using technology developed by scientec.

Republic of Cameroon
République du Cameroun

(Detail) (Detail)
National motto: Paix, Travail, Patrie (French: Peace, Work, Fatherland)
Official languages	French and English
Capital	Yaoundé
Largest City	Douala
President	Paul Biya
Prime Minister	Ephraïm Inoni
Area  - Total  - % water	Ranked 52nd 475,440 km² 1.3%
Population  - Total (2003)  - Density	Ranked 60th 15,746,179 34/km²
HDI (2003)	0.497 (148th) – low
Independence  - Date	From France and the United Kingdom January 1, 1960
Currency	CFA franc (XAF)
Time zone	UTC+1
National anthem	Chant de Ralliement
Internet TLD	.cm
Calling Code	237

The Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic of central Africa. It borders Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and the Gulf of Guinea. Originally a German colony, it was split after World War I among the French and British. In 1960, French Cameroun became an independent republic, merging with the southern part of British Cameroons in 1961 to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon. It was renamed the United Republic of Cameroon in 1972, and the Republic of Cameroon or République du Cameroun in 1984 (its official languages are English and French). Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability, which has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, and railways, as well as a petroleum industry. Despite movement toward political reform, power remains firmly in the hands of an ethnic oligarchy.

Contents 1 History 2 Politics 3 Provinces 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Culture 8 Education 9 Miscellaneous topics 10 External links

History

Main article: History of Cameroon

The first inhabitants of Cameroon were the pygmy Baka tribes. The Bantu language originated in the highlands of Cameroon, but many of its speakers moved out before foreign invaders came into the nation.

The first European contact was in the 16th century with the Portuguese, but they did not stay. The first permanent colonial settlements were started in the late 1870s, with the German Empire emerging as the major European Power. With the defeat of Germany in World War I, Cameroon became a League of Nations Mandate territory split between French Cameroun and British Cameroons in 1919. These mandates were converted into United Nations Trusteeships in 1946.

In 1960, French Cameroun gained its independence and became The Cameroon Republic. It was joined in 1961 by the southern part of the British Cameroons. The remainder of the British Cameroons became part of Nigeria at the same time. The new coalition government was led by Ahmadou Ahidjo who led a crack down on rebel groups who had remained since before independence.

Ahidjo stepped down in 1982 and was succeeded by the current president, Paul Biya. Biya has won numerous elections, but the fairness of these elections has been questioned. The last elections were held on October 11, 2004.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Cameroon

The President of Cameroon holds executive power in the government of Cameroon. This provision was part of the reforms instituted in 1996 to the Constitution, that had been originally written in 1972. The President is given a broad range of powers, and is able to carry them out without consulting the National Assembly.

The National Assembly consists of 180 delegates and meets three times a year. The main responsibility of the Assembly is to pass laws, but rarely has it changed any laws or blocked the passage of legislation.

The judiciary is subordinate to the executive branch's Ministry of Justice. The Supreme Court may review the constitutionality of a law only at the president's request.

Provinces

Main article: Provinces of Cameroon

Cameroon is divided into 10 provinces:

• Adamawa Province (Adamaoua)
• Centre Province
• East Province (Est)
• Extreme North Province (Extreme-Nord)
• Littoral Province
• North Province (Nord)
• Northwest Province (Nord-Ouest)
• West Province (Ouest)
• South Province (Sud)
• Southwest Province (Sud-Ouest)

Geography

Main article: Geography of Cameroon Location: Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria

Geographic coordinates: 6° N 12° E

Map references: Africa

Area: total: 475,440 km² land: 469,440 km² water: 6,000 km²

• List of cities in Cameroon

Economy

Main article: 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, led to a decade-long recession. Real per capita GDP fell by more than 60% from 1986 to 1994. The current account and fiscal deficits widened, and foreign debt grew. Yet because of its oil resources and favorable agricultural conditions, Cameroon still has one of the best-endowed primary commodity economies in sub-Saharan Africa.

Despite rapid urbanisation, the single largest economic activity in Cameroon is subsistence agriculture, in which virtually all of the rural population is employed.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Cameroon Cameroon's demographic profile is comprised of an estimated 250 distinct ethnic groups, which may be formed into five large regional-cultural divisions:

• western highlanders (Semi-Bantu or grassfielders), including the Bamileke, Bamun (or Bamoun), and many smaller Tikar groups in the Northwest (est. 38% of total population);
• coastal tropical forest peoples, including the Bassa, Duala (or Douala), and many smaller groups in the Southwest (12%);
• southern tropical forest peoples, including the Beti-Pahuin, Bulu (a subgroup of Beti-Pahuin), Fang (subgroup of Beti-Pahuin), Maka-Njem, and Baka pygmies (18%);
• predominantly Islamic peoples of the northern semi-arid regions (the Sahel) and central highlands, including the Fulani (or Peuhl in French) (14%); and
• the "Kirdi", non-Islamic or recently Islamic peoples of the northern desert and central highlands (18%).

Culture

Main article: Culture of Cameroon

Holidays

Date	English Name
January 1	New Year's Day
February 11	National Youth Day
May 1	Labor Day
May 20	National Day
August 15	Assumption
December 25	Christmas

In addition, movable holidays include: Christian: Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday Muslim: 'Id al-Fitr and 'Id al-Adha

See also: Music of Cameroon, List of writers from Cameroon

Education

Main article: Education in Cameroon Cameroon is known for having one of the best educational systems in Africa. Primary school is both free of charge and obligatory. Statistics say that 70% of all children in ages between 6-12 years go to school. 79% of the Cameroon population can read.There has been an increasing trend of the smartest students leaving the country in recent years to study abroad and end up settling there, the so-called "brain drain".

Miscellaneous topics

• Catholic Church in Cameroon
• Communications in Cameroon
• Foreign relations of Cameroon
• List of Cameroon-related topics
• List of cities in Cameroon
• Military of Cameroon
• Transportation in Cameroon

External links

Education

• The Cameroonian Association of Engineers and Computer ScientistsWeb site of the Association of Cameroonian Engineers in Germany

Government

• Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon official government site
• National Assembly of Cameroon official site

News

• allAfrica - Cameroon news headline links
• CRTV - Cameroon Radio Television state-run
• The Post - leading newspaper in English, published in Buea
• Le Messager privately-owned newspaper (in French)

Overviews

• BBC News - Country Profile: Cameroon
• CIA World Factbook - Cameroon

Ethnic Groups

• Baka Pygmies of Cameroon Culture and music of the first inhabitants of Cameroon
• Anthropological researches in Cameroon Fieldwork among Cameroonian populations
• The Bamileke people of Cameroon
• The Bakweri People of the former British Cameroons

Directories

• CMCLICK Online! Cameroon Portal - Cameroon Cameroon Internet Community. Cameroon Business Directory. Cameroon Information. Cameroon Culture.
• LookSmart - Cameroon directory category
• Open Directory Project - Cameroon directory category
• Stanford University - Africa South of the Sahara: Cameroon directory category
• University of Pennsylvania - African Studies Center: Cameroon directory category
• Yahoo! - Cameroon directory category

Tourism

• Travel guide to Cameroon from Wikitravel
• Cameroon tourism Information and pictures
• Cameroon In Colour Cameroon pictures. Largest Online picture collection of Cameroon. Images of Cameroon. Cameroon Photos.

Countries in Africa

Algeria | Angola | Benin | Botswana | Burkina Faso | Burundi | Cameroon | Cape Verde | Central African Republic | Chad | Comoros | Democratic Republic of the Congo | Republic of the Congo | Côte d'Ivoire | Djibouti | Egypt | Equatorial Guinea | Eritrea | Ethiopia | Gabon | The Gambia | Ghana | Guinea | Guinea-Bissau | Kenya | Lesotho | Liberia | Libya | Madagascar | Malawi | Mali | Mauritania | Mauritius | Morocco | Mozambique | Namibia | Niger | Nigeria | Rwanda | São Tomé and Príncipe | Senegal | Seychelles | Sierra Leone | Somalia/Somaliland | South Africa | Sudan | Swaziland | Tanzania | Togo | Tunisia | Uganda | Western Sahara/SADR | Zambia | Zimbabwe

Dependencies: British Indian Ocean Territory | Canary Islands | Ceuta and Melilla | Madeira Islands | Mayotte | Réunion | Saint Helena and dependencies

This article is based on the article "Cameroon" from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia created and edited by online user community. This article is distributed under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License. Here you find the list of authors of this article. The article can only edited within Wikipedia. Edit this article in Wikipedia.