The West African country of Cameroon is slightly larger than California with a tropical coast along the Bight of Biafra in the southwest, semiarid plains in the north, and mountains in the west. It is bordered by Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria.
More than 60% of Cameroon’s population is comprised of people under the age of 25. AIDS has ravaged the country and lowered the life expectancy to 55 years. The country essentially functions under a dictatorship, which provides subsidies for electricity, food, and fuel that have diverted funding from education, healthcare, and basic infrastructure. Though the nation has enjoyed stability and some economic growth through its petroleum industry and agricultural development, overall poverty is increasing.
Cameroon is home to a growing Christian minority but is a Muslim-dominated country. Christians face heavy restrictions on church activities and are subject to periodic attacks by hostile Muslim terrorist groups, like Boko Haram, especially in the northern region along Cameroon’s border with Nigeria. Boko Haram seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate across Africa and violently opposes any political or social activity associated with Western society, including voting, attending secular schools, and wearing Western dress. More than 100,000 refugees from Nigeria, where Boko Haram is most active, live in Cameroon.
Missionaries with this ministry are reaching radical Islamic communities through evangelism, discipleship at their Bible school, prison ministry, medical outreaches, women’s education initiatives, and through its orphanage.
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Joshua Project