Corruption in Cameroon

Corruption in Cameroon has been called "Cameroon's worst-kept secret" by Thomson Reuters,^[1] and Cameroon has had "persistent problems with corruption" according to BBC News.^[2] The Corruption Perceptions Index (2014) by Transparency International ranked Cameroon 136 out of 175 countries and found that the police are seen by Cameroonians as the most corrupt institution in the government.^[3]

The government of Cameroon has taken some steps addressing the problem of corruption in the country: in order to increase transparency in its oil sector, Cameroon joined the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in late 2013.^[4]

Cameroon also witnessed the prosecution of corruption committed by a former prime minister, Ephraim Inoni, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2013 for embezzlement. Several high corruption risk sectors, such as customs and public procurement, pose obstacles for doing business in Cameroon.^[5]

David Wallechinsky ranked President of Cameroon Paul Biya with three others (Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, and King Mswati of Swaziland) as the most corrupt dictators in the world. He describes Cameroon's electoral process in these terms: "Every few years, Biya stages an election to justify his continuing reign, but these elections have no credibility.^[6]

References

1. Thomson Reuters Why corruption is Cameroon's worst-kept secret 18 Nov 2010
2. Cameroon profile BBC News 16 January 2015
3. Corruption Perceptions Index: Cameroon
4. "Business Corruption in Cameroon". Business Anti-Corruption Portal. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
5. "Business Corruption in Cameroon". Business Anti-Corruption Portal. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
6. David Wallechinsky, "Tyrants: the World's 20 Worst Living Dictators", Regan Press, 2006, pp. 286–290

External links

• Cameroon Corruption Profile from the Business-Anti-Corruption Portal

A world map of the 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International