CAMEROON
Geography and Landscape
Geography and Landscape
| Basic information | |
| Official language | French, English |
| Capital | Yaoundé |
| Area | 475.442 km² |
| Population | 27,652,909 (2021) |
| Currency | CFA-franc (XAF) |
| Web | .cm |
| Code. | CAM |
| Tel. | +237 |
Geography and Landscape
Geography
Cameroon is situated in West Africa. In the north-east Cameroon borders on Chad, in the south-east on the Central African Republic, in the south on Congo Brazzaville, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea and in the west on the Atlantic Ocean and Nigeria. The surface area of Cameroon is 475,440 square kilometres.
Cameroon Satellite PhotoPhoto: Public domain
Landscape
Cameroon can be divided into three areas. In the north are the savannahs. Both game and nature are protected here in national parks, of which Waza National Park is the best known. Lake Chad lies in the hot dry north. The Logone river, which borders Chad, drains into it. The Benoue flows into the Niger in Nigeria. In the middle of the country, the Sanaga runs to the Atlantic Ocean.
In the northwest, against the border with Nigeria is a mountain plateau. In the southwest is the highest mountain of Cameroon and also of West Africa, Mount Cameroon (4095 metres). In the east and south are the dense rainforests. The plains along the coast are swampy. Cameroon has a 400 kilometre coastline.
Mount CameroonPhoto: Buma Peter CC 4.0 International no changes made
Climate and Weather
Cameroon's climate is tropical on the coast and dry and hot in the north. The average temperature is 25 degrees Celsius. It is almost never lower than 20 degrees. The highest temperature is 40 degrees Celsius. Most precipitation falls on the coast. The deeper inland you go, the less precipitation there is. In the mountains in the north-west, the dry times are in July and August and from December to March. For the whole country, the dry and at the same time cooler period lasts three months: November, December and January. In the north, heavy sandstorms can occur during these months.
Plants and Animals
Plants
Along the coast, the flora looks very different from that in the mountains or on the savannahs. In the forests, there are ebony and mahogany trees. There are orchids and rubber plants. Cameroon also grows many bananas. The savannahs, however, are barren and covered with grasses.
Animals
Cameroon has a very varied fauna. The forests are home to crocodiles, forest antelope and several species of monkeys, including chimpanzees, gorillas and other apes. There are many different species of snakes. The national parks are populated with elephants, giraffes, panthers and elks, among others. There are many birds to be seen in Cameroon.
Sources
Elmar landeninformatie
CIA - World Factbook
BBC - Country Profiles
Copyright: Team The World of Info