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| Population |
19,711,291 (est2011) |
| Seat of Parliament |
Yaounde |
| Date of Independence |
1960 |
| Constitution |
Republic |
| CPA Branch Formed |
1995 |
| Voting Age |
21 |
| First Parliament |
10 Apr 1960 |
| Local Information |
The National Assembly of Cameroon is run by a Bureau composed of:
- A Speaker
- One (1) Senior Deputy Speaker
- Five (5) Deputy Speakers
- Four (4) Questors
- Twelve (12) Secretaries
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| Branch Profile |
Current constitution: The current constitution is that of 1972, under which the federal system was replaced by a unitary republic, but extensively modified in 1990, to allow for a return from one-party rule to a multiparty system. In 1996 the presidential term was extended from five to seven years; provision was also made for the establishment of a second legislative chamber, but this has not been implemented. The constitution was amended in early 2008 to remove the limit on presidential terms. Cameroon became a member of the Commonwealth in November 1995.
Political makeup of government: The Cameroon People?s Democratic Movement (RDPC), led by President Biya, retained its overall majority of seats in the National Assembly in the 2007 elections. President Biya was last re-elected in October 2004. Shortly afterwards Ephraim Inoni became prime minister in an extensive reshuffle on 8 December. The new cabinet was dominated by the RDPC as before, and also retained members of the National Union for Democracy and Progress (UNDP) and the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon (UPC). The minister for water and energy was dismissed on 22 February 2006, after allegations of corruption. The cabinet was reshuffled on 22 September 2006, and on 7 September 2007. Inoni was dismissed as prime minister on 30 June 2009 and replaced by Philemon Yang with a reshuffled cabinet.
Several items of information were provided by People in Power. |
| Website |
http://www.spm.gov.cm/ |
Chamber 1 |
| Chamber |
National Assembly |
| No of Seats |
180 |
| No of Women |
25 |
| Date of Last Election |
22 Jul 2007 |
| Term |
5 years |
| No of Parties |
5 |
Chamber 2 |
| Chamber |
|
| No of Seats |
0 |
| No of Women |
0 |
| Date of Last Election |
|
| Term |
|
| No of Parties |
0 |
Committees |
| Number of Departmental/Ministry Oversight Committees: |
Nine |
| Number of Joint Committees (if bicameral): |
NA |
| Names of House Management (such as Privileges or Procedure) Committees: |
Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs; Economic Affairs, Planning and Regional Development; Education, Vocational Training and Youth; Cultural, Social and Family Affairs; Production and Trade; Resolutions and Petitions; National Defense and Security; and Constitutional Laws, Human Rights and Freedoms, Justice, Legislation, Standing Orders, and Administration.
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Reports |
| Are reports or recommendations from committees debated in the Chamber: |
Yes |
| Must Ministers provide substantive responses to committee reports/recommendations and, if so, what is the time limit for providing responses? |
Ministers must provide substantive responses to committee reports/recommendations. There is no time limit as focus is on questions and no time. |
Budgets |
| Does Parliament or a committee have formal input into the formulation of the budget? |
Yes |
| What is the normal time between the presentation of the budget to Members and its passage by Parliament? |
30 days is the normal time between the presentation of the budget to Members and its passage by Parliament. |
Committee staffing |
| How much Chamber and committee time is normally spent in scrutinizing the budget prior to passage? |
1 or 2 days in the Chamber and several days in committees. |
| Number of Clerks to service committees: |
One per committee |
| Do committees have access to subject specialist researchers from parliamentary staff? |
No |
| Do committees have access to funds to hire external subject specialist advisors? |
No |