Cameroon: Religious Tolerance

Christianity, Islam and Traditionalist are the three main religions in Cameroon. Christian churches and Muslim centers of various denominations operate freely throughout Cameroon while the traditionalists operate in their shrines and temples which are also becoming popular today. Cynthia Efopa

Approximately 70 percent of the population is at least nominally Christian, 19 percent is nominally Muslim and 10 percent practice traditional indigenous religious beliefs. Other religious groups that constitute less than or just 1 percent of the population include Orthodox Jews, Bahá’ís, and persons who do not associate themselves with any particular religious movement.

The Christian population is divided between Roman Catholics (32.4 percent of the total population), Protestants (30.3 percent), and other Christian denominations (including Jehovah’s Witnesses) 6 percent). The vast majority of the Muslims are Sunni belonging to Maliki school of jurisprudence, with approximately 12% Ahmadiyya and 3% Shia. Christians and Muslims are found in every region, although Christians are chiefly in the southern and western provinces. It is worthy to note that unlike common belief, the population of the three northern regions is almost equally divided between the Christians and the Muslim. Not all in the north are Muslim tribes especially in North and far north where there are tribes like the Tupuri, Mundang, Mbe Massa etc. Islam can be said to fully concentrate in the Adamawa region of Cameroon. There is significant internal migration.

The two predominantly English speaking regions and the western region largely are Protestant, and the southern and eastern regions are largely Catholic and Evangelicals. In the northern regions, the locally dominant Fulani (Fula: Fulɓe; French: Peul or Peuhl) ethnic group is mostly Muslim, but the overall population is fairly evenly mixed between Muslims, Christians, each often living in its own community. The Bamoun ethnic group of the West region is largely Muslim.   While Traditional indigenous religious beliefs are practiced in rural areas throughout the country but rarely are practiced publicly in cities, in part because many indigenous religious groups are intrinsically local in character.

There are about 4,000 adherents of the Bahá’í Faith in the country. By 2001 the Bahá’í National Spiritual Assembly was registered with the Government of Cameroon as one of the few non-Christian foreign religions.^[5] There is a tiny population of Jews in Cameroon who have established ties with the wider global Jewish community. A community of approximately 50 people practice some form of Judaism in the country today. Hinduism is the faith practiced by some South Asian migrants. The Constitution provides for freedom of religion in Cameroon, and the government generally respects this right in practice. The country is generally characterized by a high degree of religious tolerance.

Assembly was registered with the Government of Cameroon as one of the few non-Christian foreign religions. There is a tiny population of Jews in Cameroon who have established ties with the wider global Jewish community. A community of approximately 50 people practice some form of Judaism in the country today. Hinduism is the faith practiced by some South Asian migrants. The Constitution provides for freedom of religion in Cameroon, and the government generally respects this right in practice. The country is generally characterized by a high degree of religious tolerance.