Analysis of Agri-Food Trade Structures
To Promote Agri-Food Trade Networks
In the Islamic Countries
81
4.2. Cameroon
The Republic of Cameroon covers an area of 475,442 km2 and has a population of approximately
23.4 million with 24.6% living in urban settings.31 Located in central Africa, the country borders
Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Chad and
Nigeria, making it a regional center for trade in goods and services. As of 2016, Cameroon had a
GDP of 29,334 million USD and between 2013 and 2015 trade represented 27.3% of the GDP.32
Cameroon’s main trading partners are the EU which accounts for a 47.4% share of the total
exports, followed by India and China which represent 15.6% and 12.5% of exports
respectively.33 The main points of origin for imports into Cameroon are the EU (27.7%), China
(19.4%), and Nigeria (12.1%).
Cameroon’s current trade flows are the culmination of a targeted policy shift away from decades
of anti-export policies and a strategic opening of the economy to the international market
system.34 Together with its CEMAC regional partners Cameroon introduced in 1994 new
customs and fiscal regimes.35 More than a decade after their implementation, exports from three
main commodity groups dominate the market: agricultural products at 46.2%, fuel/mining
products at 46%, and manufactured goods at a distant third with only 7.7%. Taken collectively,
goods outside of these categories represent only 0.1%of the country’s total exports.36 Cameroon
is dependent upon foreign manufactured goods which account for 50% of total imports.37 In
2011, crude oil and petroleum, cocoa, logs and petroleum accounted for ¾ of total exports. In
terms of socio-economic indicators such as health, education, and income disparities, Cameroon
ranks below countries like Senegal and Ghana that have lower GDP per capita.38 Indeed, despite
being the most economically diverse country in CEMAC and despite sustained growth between
2007 and 2014 the country’s poverty increased by 12% and the poor stood at 56% of the
population. Most of the country’s poor population reside in Northern Cameroon which borders
Boko-Haram affected Northern Nigeria and Chad as well as conflict affected Central African
Republic.39
Agricultural Trade Performance
Cameroon's main categories of agricultural product import and exports are analyzed below in a
dynamic perspective. The analysis moves from the general to the specific, by becoming
increasingly focused on individual disaggregated products and countries of origin and
destination.
Composition and Patterns of Agricultural Exports
Since the 2008 food crisis, agri-food products dominate agricultural exports from Cameroon
with a record high of 64.12% in 2009 . Over the period 2005-2016, fish exports are
31 World Bank. 2018. The World Bank in Cameroon. Last accessed: 19 April of 2018.
32 World Trade Organization. (2018). Member Profiles-Cameroon. Available at:
33 Ibid.
34 WTO. (1995). Secretariat Report. Available at:
35 Ibid
36 World Trade Organization. (2018) Member Profiles-Cameroon. Available a
37 Ibid.
38 USDA Foreign Agriculture Service. (2013). Global Agricultural Information Network Report..
39 World Bank. (2018). The World Bank in Cameroon.