Location: | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria |
| Geographic coordinates: | 6 00 N, 12 00 E |
| Map references: | Africa |
| Area: | total: 475,440 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km
land: 469,440 sq km |
| Area - comparative: | slightly larger than California |
| Land boundaries: | total: 4,591 km
border countries: Central African Republic 797 km, Chad 1,094 km, Republic of the Congo 523 km, Equatorial Guinea 189 km, Gabon 298 km, Nigeria 1,690 km |
| Coastline: | 402 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 50 nm |
| Climate: | varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north |
| Terrain: | diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako (on Mount Cameroon) 4,095 m |
| Natural resources: | petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower |
| Land use: | arable land: 12.81%
permanent crops: 2.58%
other: 84.61% (2001) |
| Irrigated land: | 330 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Natural hazards: | volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes |
| Environment - current issues: | water-borne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing |
| Environment - international agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography - note: | sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano
Source: CIA World Factbook
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