Location:
Central Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria

Geographic coordinates:
6 00 N, 12 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 475,440 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 472,710 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 2,730 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 55

Area - comparative:
slightly larger than California

Land boundaries:
total: 5,018 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (6): Central African Republic 901 km, Chad 1,116 km, Republic of the Congo 494 km, Equatorial Guinea 183 km, Gabon 349 km, Nigeria 1,975 km

Coastline:
402 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
contiguous zone: 24 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - contiguous zone country ranks ]

Climate:
varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north
More Climate Details

Terrain:
diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north

Elevation:
mean elevation: 667 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Fako on Mont Cameroun 4,045 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower

Land use:
agricultural land: 20.6% arable land 13.1%; permanent crops 3.3%; permanent pasture 4.2%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 41.7%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 37.7% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
290 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
population concentrated in the west and north, with the interior of the country sparsely populated

Natural hazards:
volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes
volcanism: Mt. Cameroon (4,095 m), which last erupted in 2000, is the most frequently active volcano in West Africa; lakes in Oku volcanic field have released fatal levels of gas on occasion, killing some 1,700 people in 1986

Environment - current issues:
waterborne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa because of its central location on the continent and its position at the west-south juncture of the Gulf of Guinea; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano