Cameroon
In 1997, with assistance from The Carter Center, Cameroon became one of the first countries to stop transmission of Guinea worm disease since the campaign began in 1986.
Fighting Disease
Cameroon represents the plight of many African nations as it struggles to forge a peaceful democracy and build a vibrant economy. Ensuring that there is a healthy work force to support development goals is vital to this effort. In 1997, with assistance from The Carter Center, Cameroon became one of the first countries to stop transmission of Guinea worm disease since the campaign began in 1986. The River Blindness Foundation began assisting the Ministry of Health to distribute Mectizan® in the early 1990s. The Carter Center assumed the foundation and has continued river blindness efforts in Cameroon since 1996.
Read full text on the Carter Center's health work in Cameroon >
QUICK FACTS: CAMEROON
Size: 475,440 square kilometers -- slightly larger than the U.S. state of California
Population: 18,060,382
Life expectancy: 52 years
Ethnic groups: Cameroon Highlanders, 31 percent; Equatorial Bantu; Kirdi; Fulani; Northwestern Bantu; Eastern Nigritic; other African; and non-African
Percent of adults with HIV/AIDS: 6.9 percent
Languages: 24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official)
Population below poverty line: 48 percent
Average annual income: $1,080 USD
(Source: U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, World Factbook 2008; The World Bank 2006)