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DFID
c/o Annex British High Commission, Nouvelle Route Bastos, B.P. 547, Yaounde, Cameroon
Tel:00 237 222 05 45 | Fax:00 237 222 01 48
Map courtesy of the FCO
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Cameroon
Cameroon is a Central African country with an estimated population of nearly
16.5 million. The country faces significant development challenges, with 50% of the
population living on less than $2 a day and life expectancy at birth still only
45.8 years of age.
In October 2000 Cameroon became eligible for debt relief under the Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC). Qualification for debt relief is
dependent on the successful implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy agreed
with donors. Following significant efforts, Cameroon achieved Completion Point
in April 2006 and is now eligible for debt relief, enhancing its chance
for sustainable growth and the significant reduction of poverty. The Government
will need to continue its efforts in transparent governance and fighting
corruption.
Overview – Political & Economic
Cameroon was discovered by the Portuguese, colonised by Germany and, after the
First World War, placed under the trusteeship of France (East Cameroon) and
Britain (West Cameroon). It achieved independence from France in 1960 and in
1961 from Britain. In 1983, the United Republic of
Cameroon became the Republic of Cameroon. President Paul Biya has been in power
since 1982 and his party, the Cameroon’s People’s Democratic Movement, was
re-elected in 2004.
Its varied climate makes Cameroon a global reserve of flora and fauna.
Cameroon has relied on agriculture and timber for its export earnings for
decades; this includes the extensive cocoa and rubber plantations in the south of
the country. Cameroon exports more wood and earns more forest revenue than any
other country in Africa. The forest sector is Cameroon’s largest non-public
sector employer and its second largest source of export revenue after petroleum,
accounting for 28% of non-petroleum exports. Cameroon’s annual growth
rate between 1997 and 2000 was sustained at 4.7%.
Cameroon and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
Whilst Cameroon is committed to meeting the eight MDG targets, progress has been
slow. However, encouragingly, the most recent survey from 2003 showed that the
percentage of Cameroonians living below the poverty line has dropped from 50.5
in 1996 to 40.2 in 2001.
Progress has been made against MDGs in education, with the combined
enrolment rate for primary, secondary and tertiary schools increasing to 55%
(2002/3).
Between 1990-2000 HIV/AIDS prevalence in Cameroon rose from 2% to 11%. In
response to this, Government support increased from £53,000 in 1988 to £1.6
million in 2000.
Huge challenges evidently remain. Infant mortality rates have increased from
85 per 1000 in 1990 to 95 per 1000 in 2003 and extreme poverty is evident in
rural and isolated provinces. The adoption of the Poverty Reduction Strategy
Paper prepared by the Government in 2003 is therefore crucial to progress
in tackling these challenges.
How DFID works in Cameroon
Links
Last updated: 27 October 2006
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