Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2013/14 147 KEY FACTS Joined Commonwealth: 1995 Population: 20,030,000 (2011) GNI p.c.: US$1,210 (2011) UN HDI 2011: world ranking 150 Geography Area: 475,442 sq km Coastline: 402 km Capital: Yaoundé (constitutional); Douala (economic) Cameroon is called Cameroun in French, Kamerun in German, Camarões in Portuguese, and Cameroon in English. The country’s name derives from camarões, meaning ‘shrimps’, so called by the 15th-century Portuguese explorer Fernando Po who named the River Wouri Rio dos Camarões (‘shrimp river’), after the many shrimps. Cameroon in central Africa is bounded clockwise (from the west) by the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The country comprises ten regions: Adamaoua, Centre, Coastal, East, Far North, North, North-West, South, South-West and West. Constitution Status: Republic with executive President Legislature: National Assembly of Cameroon Independence: 1 January 1960 Under the constitution adopted in 1996 Cameroon is a unitary republic with an executive president – elected every seven years – who appoints the prime minister and council of ministers. The president also appoints the provincial governors, the judges and government delegates in main towns. In April 2008, Cameroon’s parliament approved a constitutional amendment allowing the president to serve for more than two terms. Presidential elections must then be conducted not less than 20 days or more than 120 days following the vacancy. The National Assembly has 180 members, directly elected every five years by universal adult suffrage, and has three sessions a year, in March, June and November. The constitution also provides for an upper house, the Senate, with 100 members, 70 per cent of whom are elected every five years by electoral colleges comprising local government councillors and 30 per cent nominated by the President. Each region is thus represented in the Senate by ten senators, seven of whom are indirectly elected and three appointed by the president. Elections to the Senate were held for the first time on 14 April 2013. Judicial system Supreme court: Supreme Court of Cameroon Ministry: Justice Since July 2005, when the very different penal codes in force in the francophone and anglophone regions of Cameroon were unified, there has been substantial investment into updating and expanding the judicial system. The system is presided over by the Supreme Court and comprises high courts, courts of appeal, military tribunals and courts of first instance. Although independence of the judiciary is ensured under the constitution, the Supreme Court comes under the Ministry of Justice. Cameroon
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