Refugees to be included in Cameroon’s fourth general population census
A memorandum of understanding has been signed between the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Cameroon and the Central Bureau for Census and Population Studies (BUCREP), to ensure the inclusion of refugees and internally displaced persons in the country’s fourth general census of the population and habitat.
According to the Director of BUCREP, Bernadette Mbarga, the exercise which is scheduled between November and December 2023, will run for 37 days and “will leave no one out”.
The UNHCR representative in Cameroon, Olivier Guillaume Beer, who signed for the refugees, said “this memorandum will enable us to work together, and ensure that the census is done in the best conditions possible. So that we can have the exact figures of refugees in Cameroon, their problems, their economic situation, which will enable us to find solutions to their problems.”
He added that “the partnership will facilitate cooperation and strengthen collaboration to ensure that the two million refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees and repatriates living in Cameroon, are properly identified”.
A pilot exercise to evaluate the documenting that has been prepared for the census, will start on March 22. “It is equally going to take 37 days” BUCREP’s Director, Bernadette Mbarga noted.
She said they want to be sure of the period of time they will spend on the field.
Cameroon’s population is presently estimated at over 27 million, based on projections of the United Nations data.
