Cameroon has failed to meet its 2026 target to halve gender-based violence, as systemic legal barriers and weak enforcement continue to leave women at risk. Despite government pledges, discriminatory laws in the Civil Code remain in place, and a proposed Family Code has languished in legislative limbo for over two decades.
The Legal Framework Enabling Inequality
Cameroon’s legal structure directly contributes to the prevalence of domestic abuse by codifying the authority of husbands over their wives. According to the Human Rights Watch report, the current Civil Code designates husbands as the heads of households and primary administrators of marital property. This legal standing allows men to unilaterally decide family residences, restrict their wives’ ability to work, and exert control over shared assets.
This framework creates a reality where women in both formal marriages and long-term consensual unions—often referred to as “cam we stay”—frequently lack legal standing to protect their property or earnings. When husbands exercise these legal prerogatives to destroy businesses or confiscate income, victims have little recourse under current statutes.
Data on Gender-Based Violence
The scale of violence remains significant, though official data is dated. The most recent comprehensive national figures, collected in 2018, indicated that nearly 4 in 10 women and girls in Cameroon had experienced physical, sexual, psychological, or economic violence within a relationship. In the Centre Region, excluding the capital of Yaoundé, that figure reached 64 percent.
Recent government tracking further underscores the crisis. In 2024, officials recorded at least 77 killings of women by current or former partners. Human Rights Watch notes that these figures likely underrepresent the true extent of the violence due to systemic barriers to reporting and a lack of reliable, updated national statistics.
Barriers to Justice and Support Services
Women who attempt to report abuse face a fragmented system that often discourages legal action. According to Human Rights Watch, survivors are frequently pressured by authorities to "reconcile" with their abusers or are blamed for the violence. Cases are often dismissed when perpetrators hold social or political influence, leading many women to stop reporting incidents entirely out of fear of retaliation.
Economic dependence acts as a further deterrent. Most women in Cameroon work in the informal economy, which lacks employment protections and social security. While the government inaugurated its first "One-Stop Centre" for survivors in Yaoundé in 2025, the facility is insufficient to meet the national need. Legal aid remains difficult to access due to bureaucratic delays and corruption, leaving many survivors trapped in abusive environments without a safe path to independence.
Stalled Legislative Reform
The primary mechanism for reform, a draft Family Code, has remained stuck between government ministries for more than 20 years. Despite repeated commitments to reduce gender-based violence—including the specific pledge to cut rates in half by 2026—the government has not enacted the necessary legislative changes.
Human Rights Watch emphasizes that until the government reforms discriminatory laws, adopts the long-delayed Family Code, and establishes a coordinated, well-funded national response, the cycle of violence is likely to persist. Progress requires not only awareness campaigns but also the structural overhaul of institutions that currently prioritize marital authority over the safety and rights of women.
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