Cameroon

Yaoundé · Central Africa

Cameroon is a country in Africa. Its capital city is Yaoundé, the official currency is the Central African CFA Franc, and the main language is French.

With a population of roughly 28.6 million people spread over 475,442 km², Cameroon is the 53rd most populous country in the world and the 53rd largest by area. That works out at about 60 people per square kilometre.

Cameroon shares land borders with Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea — 6 neighbours in all. Its largest urban centres are Douala, Yaoundé and Garoua. The highest point in the country is Mount Cameroon, at 4,040 metres.

For scale, it covers almost exactly the same area as Papua New Guinea, while its population is closest to that of Venezuela.

Capital
Yaoundé
Region
Central Africa
Population
28,600,000
Area
475,442 km²
Currency
Central African CFA Franc
Main language
French
Highest point
Mount Cameroon
4,040 m
Land borders
6

Cameroon: things worth knowing

  • Cameroon is often called 'Africa in miniature' for containing desert, savanna, rainforest and mountains.
  • It has both English and French as official languages, a legacy of divided colonial rule.
  • Mount Cameroon is an active volcano and one of the wettest places on Earth.

Cameroon in context

Africa has 54 sovereign countries in total. Cameroon ranks 17th among them by population.

See the full list of Africa countries, or browse all 195 countries.

Other countries in Africa