Cameroon Government

What is the capital of Cameroon?

Country Name	Cameroon
Full Country Name	Republic of Cameroon
Local - Long	Republique du Cameroun (French)/Republic of Cameroon (English)
Local - Short	Cameroun/Cameroon
Former Name	Kamerun, French Cameroon, British Cameroon, Federal Republic of Cameroon, United Republic of Cameroon
Etymology- history of name	in the 15th century, Portuguese explorers named the area near the mouth of the Wouri River the Rio dos Camaroes (River of Prawns) after the abundant shrimp in the water; over time the designation became Cameroon in English; this is the only instance where a country is named after a crustacean
Government Type	presidential republic
Capital Name	Yaounde
Capital - geographic coordinate	3 52 N, 11 31 E
Capital Time Difference	UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Independence	1 January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)
National Holiday	State Unification Day (National Day), 20 May (1972)
Constitution	history: several previous; latest effective 18 January 1996 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by Parliament; amendment drafts require approval of at least one third of the membership in either house of Parliament; passage requires absolute majority vote of the Parliament membership; passage of drafts requested by the president for a second reading in Parliament requires two-thirds majority vote of its membership; the president can opt to submit drafts to a referendum, in which case passage requires a simple majority; constitutional articles on Cameroon’s unity and territorial integrity and its democratic principles cannot be amended; amended 2008

Cameroon Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Cameroon Government and Politics

Who is the president of Cameroon?

Executive Branch:	chief of state: President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982) head of government: Prime Minister Joseph Dion NGUTE (since 4 January 2019) cabinet: Cabinet proposed by the prime minister, appointed by the president elections/appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 7-year term (no term limits); election last held on 7 October 2018 (next to be held in October 2025); prime minister appointed by the president election results: 2018: Paul BIYA reelected president; percent of vote - Paul BIYA (CPDM) 71.3%, Maurice KAMTO (MRC) 14.2%, Cabral LIBII (Univers) 6.3%, other 8.2% (2018)
Citizenship Criteria:	citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Cameroon dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Legal System:	mixed legal system of English common law, French civil law, and customary law
Suffrage:	20 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch:	description: bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of: Senate or Senat (100 seats; 70 members indirectly elected by regional councils and 30 appointed by the president; members serve 5-year terms) National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members directly elected in 49 single and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last held on 12 March 2023 (next to be held in 2028) National Assembly - last held on 9 February 2020 (next to be held 28 February 2025) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - CDPM 100%; seats by party - CDPM 100; composition as of October 2023 - men 69, women 31, percent of women 31% National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CPDM 152, UNDP 7, SDF 5, PCRN 5, UDC 4, FSNC 3, MDR 2, UMS 2; composition as of October 2023 - men 109, women 58, percent of women 32.2%; note - total Parliament percent of women 31.7% note: 13 National Assembly seats were vacant after the 9 February 2020 election due to violence in northwest and southwest regions; CDPM won those seats in a 22 March 2020 election
Judicial Branch:	highest court(s): Supreme Court of Cameroon (consists of 9 titular and 6 surrogate judges and organized into judicial, administrative, and audit chambers); Constitutional Council (consists of 11 members) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the president with the advice of the Higher Judicial Council of Cameroon, a body chaired by the president and includes the minister of justice, selected magistrates, and representatives of the National Assembly; judge term NA; Constitutional Council members appointed by the president for renewable 6-year terms subordinate courts: Parliamentary Court of Justice (jurisdiction limited to cases involving the president and prime minister); appellate and first instance courts; circuit and magistrates' courts
Regions or States:	10 regions (regions, singular - region) Adamaoua, Centre, East (Est), Far North (Extreme-Nord), Littoral, North (Nord), North-West (Nord-Ouest), West (Ouest), South (Sud), South-West (Sud-Ouest)t)
Political Parties and Leaders:	Alliance for Democracy and Development [Garga Haman ADJI] Cameroon People's Democratic Movement or CPDM [Paul BIYA] Cameroon People's Party or CPP [Edith Kah WALLA] Cameroon Renaissance Movement or MRC [Maurice KAMTO] Cameroonian Democratic Union or UDC [Hermine Patricia TOMAINO] Cameroonian Party for National Reconciliation or PCRN [Cabral LIBII] Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon or FSNC [Issa Tchiroma BAKARY] Movement for the Defense of the Republic or MDR [Paulin DJOWRWE] Movement for the Liberation and Development of Cameroon or MLDC [Marcel YONDO] National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Maigari BELLO BOUBA] Progressive Movement or MP [Jean-Jacques EKINDI] Social Democratic Front or SDF [Joshua OSIH] Union of Peoples of Cameroon or UPC [Pierre Baleguel NKOT] Union of Socialist Movements [Pierre KWEMO]
International Law Organization Participation:	accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; non-party state to the ICCt
International Organization Participation:	ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, C, CEMAC, EITI (compliant country), FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LCBC, MIGA, MNJTF, MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHRC, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic Representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Henri ETOUNDI ESSOMBA (since 27 June 2016) chancery: 2349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-8790 FAX: [1] (202) 387-3826 email address and website: mail@cameroonembassyusa
Diplomatic Representation from US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher J. LAMORA (since 21 March 2022) embassy: Avenue Rosa Parks, Yaoundé mailing address: 2520 Yaounde Place, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 22251-4000/[237] 22220-1500 FAX: [237] 22220-1500, Ext. 4531 email address and website: YaoundeACS@state.gov https://cm.usembassy.gov/ branch office(s): Douala

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