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Cameroon is located on the West coast of Africa, surrounded by Nigeria,
Gabon, Chad, Central African Republic, Congo and Equatorial Guinea. It
has a 400km coastline to the Atlantic Ocean.
The climate ranges
from tropical rainforest to open savanna, with high mountain ranges on
the North West border with Nigeria. Mount Cameroon located at Buea near
the port of Limbe rises to 4,100 meters and is an active volcano. From
the main commercial port city of Douala, the land rises to 700 metres at
Yaounde, the national capital. The mountain range bordering Nigeria
climbs to over 2,000 metres. Throughout Cameroon there are areas of
thermal springs, and indications of current or prior volcanic activity.
The population is
about 15,000,000, comprised of over 200 tribal groups. No tribe or
religion has dominance, and the country has been typically peaceful
throughout its history.
Land area is
475,440 square kilometres, or 183,638 square miles.
French Cameroon was
granted independence from France in 1960.
The Southern part of British Cameroon joined the Republic of Cameroon in
1961, to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon. In 1984 the name was
officially changed to The Republic of Cameroon. In 1992, the first
multiparty elections were held.
The system of
government is the French model, with a powerful office of President
(elected for seven year terms), a Prime Minister and Ministers appointed
by the President, and the Chamber of Deputies elected by popular vote
every four years.
His excellency,
Paul Biya has been President since 1982.
Cameroon became a
full member of the Commonwealth of Nations in 1996, and now actively
participates in that organisation. Membership became possible due to
part of the republic being the former British Cameroon, or South
Nigeria.
The official
languages are French and English, although French is dominant. English
is most strongly represented in the former British Cameroon region.
Bilingual schools are common throughout the country, and increasing
numbers of people realise the importance of learning English in the new
global economy.
The currency is the CFA
Franc. The CFA is linked to the Euro through a guarantee by France that
parity to the old French Franc will be maintained. The currency thus
fluctuates against the world currencies in line with the Euro.
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Main cities are; Douala, the principal seaport and commercial
capital, with a population of over 2,500,000; Yaounde, the
capital with 1.2 million, and other major cities or provincial
capitals at Garoua, Maroua, Ngounderie, Bamenda, Bafoussam,
Foumban, and Kumba. A large proportion of the population (47%)
lives in non urban areas. The Camerounians are very good
farmers, and produce a surplus of diverse crops.
Major crops for
export and local use include:
rubber, palm oil, cotton, cacao, coffee, tea, bananas,
pineapples, haricot beans, sugar, potatoes of various varieties,
and a variety of fruit and vegetables.
Ports other than
Douala are Kribi, a developing port, and holiday resort. This is
also the shipping port for the new Chad to Cameroon oil
pipeline, currently being built at a cost of four billion
dollars; and Limbe, the export point for locally produced oil,
and the location of the country's oil refinery, which has a
production level of 100,000 barrels per day. Unrefined oil is
the country's prime export.
Resources: The
country has an extraordinary range of resources, both mineral,
and forestry, most of which have yet to be exploited, although
timber production is a major industry. Apart from oil, the only
two other mineral based enterprises in operation are; A large
cement plant at Douala, and a 39 year old aluminum smelter at
Edea, between Douala, and Yaounde. Despite known bauxite
deposits in the billions of tonnes, most of the supplies for the
smelter are shipped in from Guinea.
Government
schools in Cameroon are structured on the Western curriculum,
with primary and secondary schools. Whilst French is the
dominant language, parents can now specify that their children
attend an English speaking school.
These is also a
wide range of church schools and colleges throughout the
country.
The Yaounde
University has over 60 000 students, attending six campuses.
There are located at:
Yaounde 1 and 2
Douala
Dschang
Buea
Ngaoundre
Electricity: Over
90% of Cameroon's power is generated by hydroelectric plants and
there are other identified power station sites for future
development
National Day:
Cameroon's National Day is on the 20th of May each year.
International
(ISD) Dial Code: +237
Area Codes: DOUALA (3), YAOUNDE (2) |
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