Cameroon is dominated by a strong central government and a longstanding president. The country faces a variety of challenges including extremist violence in the north, refugees spilling over from the Central African Republic in the East, and a violent separitist movement in its English-speaking western regions. While human rights problems in the country have seen some improvement, they persist. Economic success has not sufficiently raised the health levels of the population: Cameroon ranks near the bottom of life expectancy, under-5 mortality, and maternal mortality statistics. HIV/AIDS and malaria represent two of the major health challenges facing the country: The rate of HIV infection is among the highest in the West and Central Africa region, while malaria represents the main cause of infant-child morbidity.

Our work improves healthcare, fights malaria and HIV/AIDS, provides emergency humanitarian assistance, and works to combat violent extremism. USAID recently upgraded its presence in Cameroon to an Office. Programming run out of the Yaounde Office includes the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI). USAID’s West Africa Regional Office in Accra, Ghana also runs programs, which includes Voices for Peace, a community led project which aims to reduce vulnerability to extremism by amplifying local voices and encouraging dialogue of peace and tolerance, and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Regional Leadership Center.