NAVIGATION
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NAVIGATION
Republic of Cameroon
former: French Cameroon
former: British Cameroon
INTRODUCTION
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Background:
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The former French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon merged in 1961 to form the present country. Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability, which has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, and railways, as well as a petroleum industry. Despite movement toward democratic reform, political power remains firmly in the hands of an ethnic oligarchy. |
GEOGRAPHY
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Location:
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Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria |
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Geographic coordinates:
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6 00 N, 12 00 E |
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Map references:
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Africa |
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Area:
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total: 475,440 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km land: 469,440 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly larger than California |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 4,591 km
border countries: Central African Republic 797 km, Chad 1,094 km, Republic of the Congo 523 km, Equatorial Guinea 189 km, Gabon 298 km, Nigeria 1,690 km |
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Coastline:
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402 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 50 NM |
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Climate:
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varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north |
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Terrain:
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diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako (on Cameroon Mountain) 4,095 m |
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Natural resources:
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petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable land: 12.81%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 84.61% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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330 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes |
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Environment - current issues:
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water-borne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban |
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Geography - note:
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sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano |
PEOPLE
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Population:
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16,184,748
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 42.1% (male 3,443,505; female 3,367,571)
15-64 years: 54.5% (male 4,431,524; female 4,392,155) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 253,242; female 296,751) (2002 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.36% (2002 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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35.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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Death rate:
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12.08 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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68.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 54.36 years
female: 55.23 years (2002 est.) male: 53.51 years |
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Total fertility rate:
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4.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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7.73% (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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540,000 (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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52,000 (1999 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Cameroonian(s)
adjective: Cameroonian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwestern Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1% |
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Religions:
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indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% |
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Languages:
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24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 63.4% male: 75% female: 52.1% (1995 est.) |