Cameroon is located on the West coast of Africa , surrounded by Nigeria , Gabon , Chad , Central African Republic , Congo and Equatorial Guinea . It has a 400km coastline to the Atlantic Ocean .

The name Cameroon is derived from the Portuguese word, Camaroes, meaning shrimps. A portuguese sailor Ferdanando Poo in 1472 arrived at the River Wouri in Douala and discovered so many shrimps in the river that he decided to call it Rio Dos Camaroes (River of shrimps, in Portuguese)... It was from this word that the territory derived is name which is now spelt in various forms: Spanish spelt it Cameroes; Germans, Kamerun; English, Cameroon ; and French, Cameroun .

Cameroon has many different types of climate. In the South of the country, the dry season extends from November to February, with a light rainy season from March to June and heavy rains from the beginning of August to the end of September. The average temperature is 26 °C. In the North of the country, the rainy season extends from May to the end of September (less than 1 metre per year). The average temperature in the extreme North is 29 °C and 22 °C in Adamaoua.

The population is about 15,000,000, comprised of over 200 tribal groups. No tribe or religion has dominance, and the country has been typically peaceful throughout its history.