Country Day Cameroon: building on university cooperation

Campus France and the French Embassy in Cameroon organised a Country Day on Cameroon on 5 April 2022 in the presence of André-Magnus Ekoumou, Ambassador of Cameroon to France, representative of the Minister of State, Minister of Higher Education in Cameroon, and Christophe Guilhou, Ambassador of France to Cameroon.

His Excellency Mr André-Magnus Ekoumou, Ambassador of Cameroon to France, Mr Olivier Chiche-Portiche, Director General of Campus France a.i. and Mr Christophe Guilhou, Ambassador of France to Cameroon.

© Campus France

During this information day focused on university cooperation, representatives of 41 French higher education institutions, associations and research organisations exchanged with representatives of 9 Cameroonian universities who were present at round tables to primarily discuss the development of partnerships and student and teacher exchanges between Cameroon and France. This day was also an opportunity to organise bilateral exchange sessions between representatives of higher education institutions from both countries. For the first time, the Cameroonian delegation included the rectors of all public universities.

I want to stress the determination of both countries to strengthen their cooperation bridges, especially at university level.

Cameroon, a crossroads of higher education in Central Africa

Cameroon registers approximately 350 000 students mostly registered in the eight state universities (82% or 288 000 students in 2019). The Cameroonian higher education system is different in Central Africa in its stability and its early commitment to reforms aimed at improving its efficiency: it was one of the first countries in the sub-region to adopt the LMD system.

In Cameroon, about 80% of the population speaks French. French and English are both official languages and bilingualism is widely encouraged by the government.

Cameroon strongly drains students from Central Africa, particularly from Chad, Central Africa and the Congo, with about 30 000 students studying in this country. This is why Cameroon seeks to become a hub for higher education in the sub-region.

Cameroon, a priority for university cooperation with Africa

Cameroon is an attractive country for French higher education. France is the 2nd most popular host country for Cameroonian students: 8,329 registered to a French higher education institution in 2020-2021 (+20% in 5 years).

Cameroon is a priority country for Campus France. Since 2007 in Yaoundé and 2011 in Douala, the Campus France Cameroon teams provide information and support to a growing number of applicants to study in France (+70% in 5 years). The Salon pour la promotion des études françaises (SAPEF, Promotion of French Studies Fair) is organised every year, and welcomes more than sixty higher education institutions from France, Cameroon and other sub-Saharan African countries. In 2019, more than 6,500 visitors attended the fair. A new edition of SAPEF is planned from 17 to 22 October 2022 with the theme “University partnerships between Cameroon and France: Teaching, training and research; State of play and future prospects”. Since its launch in 2017, the France Alumni network is growing in Cameroon and now has nearly 6,000 members.

The French Embassy in Cameroon has made support for academic and scientific cooperation one of its priorities. The Propulse programme is financed as part of a public-private partnership with French companies to promote applications from candidates of excellence with modest resources for high-level training in France. Cameroon has also been selected as a “pilot” country for a new programme of cross-mobility scholarships which is in line with the objectives of the Ouagadougou speech (2017), and which aims to revitalise student mobility and university exchanges between the African continent and France. On the research support side, the FSPI project “Pépinière doctorale et hub de recherche d'Afrique centrale au Cameroun” (Doctoral Incubator and Research Hub of Central Africa in Camerron) aims to set up a French research hub in Cameroon. The project includes three levels: institutional support, research training support and research support.

New edition of the Focus Pays on Cameroon

During the Country Day, Campus France published a new release of the Focus Pays on Cameroon. 

© Campus France

This publication sums up several data to describe Cameroon’s higher education and inward and outward mobility, and present scientific and university cooperation between France and Cameroon.