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Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Cameroon
conventional short form: Cameroon
former: French Cameroon
Data code: CM
Government type: unitary republic; multiparty presidential regime (opposition parties legalized in 1990)
Capital: Yaounde
Administrative divisions: 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest
Independence: 1 January 1960 (from UN trusteeship under French administration)
National holiday: National Day, 20 May (1972)
Constitution: 20 May 1972
Legal system: based on French civil law system, with common law influence; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982)
head of government: Prime Minister Peter Mafany MUSONGE (since
19 September 1996)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year
term; election last held 12 October 1997 (next to be held NA October
2004); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: President Paul BIYA reelected; percent of vote—Paul
BIYA 93%; note—supporters of the opposition candidates boycotted
the elections, making a comparison of vote shares relatively meaningless
Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members are
elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms; note—the
president can either lengthen or shorten the term of the legislature)
elections: last held 11 May 1997 (next to be held NA 2002)
election results: percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—CDPM
109, SDF 43, UNDP 13, UDC 5, UPC-K 1, MDR 1, MLJC 1; note—7
contested seats will be filled in an election at a time to be
set by the Supreme Court
note: the constitution calls for an upper chamber for the legislature,
to be called Senate, which the government proposed to establish
in 1998
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president
Political parties and leaders:
Cameroon People's Democratic Movement or CPDM (government-controlled
and the only party until legalization of opposition parties in
1990) [Paul BIYA, president]
major opposition parties: Cameroonian Democratic Union or UDC
[Adamou NDAM NJOYA]; Movement for the Defense of the Republic
or MDR [Dakole DAISSALA]; Movement for the Youth of Cameroon or
MLJC [Marcel YANDO]; National Union for Democracy and Progress
or UNDP [Maigari BELLO BOUBA, chairman]; Social Democratic Front
or SDF [John FRU NDI]; Union of Cameroonian Populations or UPC
[Augustin Frederick KODOG]; Union of Cameroonian Democratic Forces
or UFOC [Victorin Hameni BIELEU]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Alliance for Change or FAC; Cameroon Anglophone Movement or CAM [Vishe FAI, secretary general]
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, C, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UDEAC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in
the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jerome MENDOUGA
chancery: 2349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 265-8790
FAX: [1] (202) 387-3826
Diplomatic representation from
the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador John M. YATES
embassy: Rue Nachtigal, Yaounde
mailing address: B. P. 817, Yaounde; pouch: American Embassy,
Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520
telephone: [237] 23-45-52
FAX: [237] 23-07-53
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia