weighted score 5.9 · nine dimensions
Country Risk Profile
Cameroon
Sourcing risk, regulatory exposure and audit intelligence for Cameroon-origin supply chains.
Forced & child labour
6
ILAB lists cocoa for child labour and forced labour. Prevalent in smallholder cocoa farming. Anglophone crisis creates additional exploitation risks in affected regions.
Worker rights & FOA
6
Core ILO conventions ratified but enforcement very limited. Labour inspectorate under-resourced. Freedom of association restricted in practice in some sectors.
OHS & audit transparency
6
Limited social audit infrastructure. Few accredited audit bodies operating in-country. Remote cocoa regions difficult to access, especially in conflict-affected Anglophone areas.
Food & product safety
5
Food safety standards for cocoa and coffee exports are managed through international commodity systems. Domestic food safety regulatory capacity is limited.
Environmental & regulatory
7
EUDR high exposure: cocoa, timber, rubber all regulated commodities. Deforestation is a major concern. FLEGT VPA signed but licensing not yet operational. Environmental governance weak.
Governance & anti-corruption
8
TI CPI ~25 (very high corruption). President Biya in power since 1982. Succession uncertainty. Customs corruption well-documented. Weak rule of law.
Tariff & preferential access
2
EU EPA provides duty-free, quota-free access — strong preferential trade position. Low tariff risk for Cameroon-origin goods entering the EU.
Non-tariff barriers
6
EUDR compliance requirements will create significant non-tariff barriers for cocoa, timber, and rubber. Geolocation and traceability requirements challenging for smallholder supply chains.
Supply chain traceability
7
Smallholder-dominated cocoa supply chain with multiple intermediaries. Traceability to farm level is very challenging. Timber chain-of-custody verification limited outside FSC/PEFC certified operations.
Labour & Social Risk
Labour & Social Risk
- Forced labour risk
- Child labour is prevalent in Cameroon's cocoa sector. ILAB lists cocoa as produced with child labour and forced labour. Children work in hazardous conditions including land clearing, pesticide application, and carrying heavy loads.
- Sectors at elevated risk
- Cocoa, coffee, timber, rubber, and cotton — all primary export commodities with documented labour risks. Artisanal mining (gold, cobalt) also carries elevated forced labour risk.
- Audit limitations
- Social audit infrastructure is limited. Few accredited audit bodies operate in Cameroon. Remote cocoa-growing regions are difficult to access, particularly in the South West and Littoral regions affected by the Anglophone crisis.
- ILO conventions
- Cameroon has ratified core ILO conventions including C029 (Forced Labour) and C138 (Minimum Age). However, enforcement capacity is very limited. Labour inspectorate is under-resourced.
- Anglophone crisis
- Ongoing armed conflict in Anglophone regions (North West and South West) since 2016 has displaced over 700,000 people. The crisis affects cocoa-producing regions and creates additional labour exploitation risks.
EU Regulatory Exposure
EU Regulatory Exposure
- EU EPA
- Cameroon has an interim Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU providing duty-free, quota-free access for most exports. EPA includes sustainability commitments but enforcement mechanisms are limited.
- EUDR exposure
- High exposure. Cameroon exports cocoa, timber, and rubber — all EUDR-regulated commodities. Due diligence statements required for EU imports from 2025/2026. Geolocation and traceability requirements will be challenging given the smallholder-dominated cocoa supply chain.
- EU Forced Labour Regulation
- Regulation (EU) 2024/3015 applies from December 2027. Cocoa from Cameroon presents elevated risk of investigation under Article 5 given documented child labour and forced labour in the sector.
- CBAM
- Limited exposure. Cameroon's exports to the EU are primarily agricultural commodities and timber, not CBAM-covered industrial goods (steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers).
- FLEGT
- Cameroon signed a FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the EU in 2010 but the FLEGT licensing scheme is not yet operational. Timber legality verification remains a significant compliance challenge.
Logistics & Supply Chain
Logistics & Supply Chain
- Primary export corridor
- Port of Douala → Gulf of Guinea → West African coast → Strait of Gibraltar → EU ports
- Key transit chokepoints
- Strait of Gibraltar
- Main EU destination ports
- Rotterdam, Antwerp, Hamburg, Le Havre
- Typical transit time
- 12–18 days to Northwest Europe
- Scope 3 relevance
- Shorter maritime route than Asian origins reduces transport emissions. However, Port of Douala congestion adds dwell time and associated emissions. Deforestation-linked commodities carry substantial upstream Scope 3 exposure.