Unemployment in Cameroon

Unemployment in Cameroon is shaped by major differences between urban and rural areas, genders, age groups and education levels. According to the local INS benchmark EESI3 from 2021, the unemployment rate under the ILO definition for people aged 14 and over was 6.1 percent. It was 9.4 percent in urban areas and 1.6 percent in rural areas, 15.4 percent in Douala and 11.7 percent in Yaoundé. The rate was 7.5 percent for women and 5.1 percent for men; among people aged 14 to 34 it was 10.4 percent, and among people with higher education it was 17.6 percent, rising to 28.2 percent for women with higher education. At the same time, 86.6 percent of employed people worked informally, so a low overall rate does not fully show the actual insecurity of income. The public employment service (Fonds National de l’Emploi (FNE)) is the established public job-placement service. Jobseekers register at an FNE agency in their place of residence or online and then receive counselling, occupational assessment, job placement and, where appropriate, training. The FNE has 17 agencies in ten regions; private job-placement offices may also operate if they are legally authorised. The registration dossier normally includes a copy of the highest qualification, a copy of the national identity card (CNI), a CV and two 4 x 4 photographs. Employment certificates may also be requested or useful. FNE services are free, but no general processing deadline has been published. Job placement may lead to a job interview, short training or in-company training. Short FNE training often lasts a few weeks, while in-company training can last approximately one week to one year, depending on the programme. Anyone who does not find suitable employment can also explore self-employment or a micro-enterprise through the FNE. The qualified-candidate office (Bureau Cadres) is intended for qualified applicants with at least five years of continuous professional experience and focuses mainly on Yaoundé and Douala. A general entitlement to unemployment insurance or unemployment benefit has not been established in the available evidence. The National Social Insurance Fund (Caisse Nationale de Prévoyance Sociale (CNPS)) covers family benefits, old age, invalidity, death, occupational accidents and occupational diseases, but not a general unemployment benefit (chômage). Social safety nets (Filets sociaux) may provide cash transfers or public works to certain poor or especially vulnerable households; they do not replace a general unemployment benefit and are not generally linked to being unemployed. The socio-professional integration and reintegration programme (PAIRPPEV) supports the socio-professional integration or reintegration of especially vulnerable people. Identification and registration are handled through the Ministry of Social Affairs (Ministère des Affaires Sociales (MINAS)) and the FNE. The programme is intended for people aged 15 to 60 and may require a specific self-employment or micro-enterprise project. In the case of an economically motivated dismissal (licenciement pour motif économique), the employee representation is consulted; in addition, priority for rehiring may apply. Temporary work suspension (chômage technique), by contrast, means a temporary suspension of the employment contract and not a general unemployment benefit. During this contract suspension, statutory compensation may be owed under Order 001/CAB/MTPS/1995 (Arrêté 001/CAB/MTPS/1995). No general duty to register as unemployed or make monthly contributions for an unemployment benefit has been established. For practical support, the FNE, the ministry responsible for employment (MINEFOP), the Ministry of Finance (MINFI), the CNPS and, for especially vulnerable target groups, MINAS are the relevant contacts.