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Cameroon Country Profile

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Business Corruption in Cameroon

Corruption in Cameroon has been a significant problem for many years, inhibiting investment opportunities. Recent trends, however, demonstrate the Cameroonian government's willingness to address a number of corruption-related issues. For instance, after extensive efforts to increase transparency in its oil sector, in late-2013 Cameroon became a compliant member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), lessening the likelihood of corruption in its resource industries. Another positive recent initiative was the corruption-related conviction of a former prime minister, Ephraim Inoni, who in 2013 was sentenced to 20 years in prison for embezzlement, and of a former health minister, Urbain Olanguena Awono, who was in 2013 sentenced to 20 years in prison for graft

However, Cameroon still faces multiple challenges in curbing corruption: the sectors of customs, public health facilities and public procurement are all particularly prone to corruption. In addition, foreign companies have claimed that rulings made against them in the judicial system were based on fraudulent evidence. In an attempt to encourage foreign investment, Cameroon's president, Paul Biya, in 2013 introduced a new investment code (in French). It is too soon to evaluate the effectiveness of this initiative. There are concerns regarding Cameroon's political stability in the coming years. President Biya, who won another seven-year term as president in 2013's election, turned 80 in the same year. Due to the length of Biya's reign, some sources predict unrest in Cameroon should the president not complete his term of office.

For a more extensive description of the levels of corruption within Cameroon's institutions and sectors, see the profile's Corruption Levels. More detail on the Cameroonian government's and civil society's achievements in the fight against corruption is provided on the Public Anti-Corruption Initiatives and Private Anti-Corruption Initiatives pages.

Cameroon Corruption News

View the Cameroon News Archive

 

Publication date: March 2014

Data verified by GAN Integrity Solutions

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