Cameroon Covers an area of 475,442 square kilometers (183,569 square miles), locates in west Africa, and is a mixture of desert plains in the north, mountains in the central regions, and tropical rain forest in the south. Along its western border with Nigeria are mountains, which include the volcanic Cameroon Mountain—the highest point in West Africa at 4,100 meters (13,451 feet).
Due to its exhibition of all the major climates and vegetation types both of mountains, desert, rain forest, savanna grassland, and ocean coastland, Cameroon is sometimes described as “Africa in miniature”. The country can be divided into five geographic zones and these are distinguished by dominant physical, climatic, and vegetative features.
Concerning nature and wildlife, the Republic of Cameroon in West Central Africa has the continent’s second-highest concentration of biodiversity. Cameroon has 18 national parks and equivalent protected areas covering about 2 million hectares (6 million acres), about 4.5% of the country.
The country boasts over 320 different mammals, 1,000 varieties of butterflies, and more than 9,000 plant species including some found nowhere else on the planet. Cameroon also has all the major climates and vegetation that Africa has desert, mountain, coast, savanna, and rain forest. Major game animals include buffalo, elephant, hippopotamus, antelope, Derby eland, and kudu. Twenty-two primate species are known in the coastal forests along the Gabon border. As of 2002, there were at least 409 species of mammals, 165 species of birds, and over 8,200 species of plants throughout the country
People and culture
About culture and people, the country has been nicknamed the “Little Africa.”Cameroon has an extremely heterogeneous population, consisting of approximately 250 ethnic groups. The Highlanders constitute the majority at 38% of the total population and these include the Bamileke and the Bamoun. The coastal tropical forest peoples include the Bassa, Douala, and many smaller entities account for about 12% of the population. In the southern tropical forest, ethnic groups include the Ewondo, Bulu, and Fang (all Beti subgroups), and the Maka and Pygmies officially called Bakas. They account for about 18% of the population. The Fulani Peuhl account for about 14% of the population and the Kirdi account for about 18%.
Concerning Cameroon’s people follow different religions where half of the population are Christian (Catholics and Protestant) mostly in the south whereas the Muslims dominate in the northern part of the country. The remaining 25% of the population follow variations of traditional animist beliefs, paying homage to the spirits of ancestors. There is much discrimination of non Muslims in northern Nigeria by the majority Muslims there.
For the indigenous people of Cameroon, their Staple foods include cassava, cocoyam, yam, rice, plantain, potato, maize, beans, millet, ndole, and achu. Fish, poultry and meat are the most source of protein for most inhabitants but they are expensive to buy especially by the local people hence not mostly consumed. Bush meat is commonly consumed and the most liked species include the pangolin, porcupine and the giant rat. Although the French introduced French bread and Italian pasta, they are not widely consumed because of the high prices.
Cameroon’s economy is based on a diversified and self-sufficient agriculture participated in by the 56% of the total population but only 15% of the total land area is arable making land for agriculture limited. Coffee and cocoa are Cameroon’s principal agricultural exports, along with cork, wood, and cotton, bananas, rubber, palm oil and kernels, and peanuts whereas the main food crops are plantains, cassava, corn, millet, and sugarcane. Agricultural industry is supplemented by substantial petroleum production and a sizable manufacturing sector, the Central African CFA Francs (CAF) is the country’s currency.
Therefore, Cameroon is the best tourism destination with more unique features fit for every kind of travelers and has a favorable climate good for travelers.