In 2023, Cameroon’s electricity consumption totaled about 8.3 TWh, or 296 kWh per person—less than one-twelfth of the global average of 3,853 kWh per person. Low-carbon sources supplied almost two-thirds of the total, at 5.3 TWh, almost entirely from hydropower. Fossil fuels supplied the remaining 3 TWh, with gas accounting for about 2 TWh, or nearly a quarter of all electricity. Despite its substantial clean electricity share, Cameroon’s very low electricity consumption can constrain industry, healthcare, education and access to reliable cooling and digital services. Expanding clean electricity would support development while limiting the air pollution and climate impacts associated with fossil fuels.

Is Electricity Growing in Cameroon?

Cameroon’s electricity consumption per person is not keeping pace with its historical highs. The 2023 level of 296 kWh per person was 56 kWh, or about 16%, below the record of 352 kWh reached in 2015. Low-carbon electricity generation per person was also below its peak: 188 kWh in 2023, compared with 258 kWh in 2006—a shortfall of roughly 70 kWh, or more than a quarter. These figures show a concerning decline relative to previous per-person records, although they do not by themselves establish whether total national generation has fallen. Faster clean electricity expansion is needed to improve access and support growing demand from electrification and digital infrastructure.

Suggestions

Cameroon can build on its hydropower foundation by expanding solar electricity, strengthening its grid and exploring nuclear generation as a longer-term source of dependable low-carbon electricity. South Africa provides a useful African reference, with about 19 TWh of solar electricity and 11 TWh each from wind and nuclear in the supplied comparison. Cameroon could learn from its experience across these technologies while assessing wind resources locally. Brazil, another tropical region with substantial hydropower, demonstrates the scale achievable with solar and wind, producing about 88 TWh and 110 TWh respectively. For nuclear development, Cameroon could study the experience of Pakistan, which generates about 25 TWh, and France, which generates about 373 TWh, focusing on workforce training, institutional capacity and international partnerships. These examples offer practical lessons rather than generation targets to copy directly.

History

Cameroon’s recorded low-carbon electricity history is dominated by hydropower growth, interrupted by several setbacks. During the 1980s, the listed hydro increases totaled about 1 TWh, followed by gains of 0.2 TWh in both 1997 and 1999. The early 2000s were uneven: hydropower fell by 0.3 TWh in 2002, recovered by the same amount in 2003 and added another 0.4 TWh in 2004, before a small decline in 2005. In 2006, hydropower increased slightly and biofuel electricity rose by 0.6 TWh, but that biofuel increase was reversed the following year. Hydropower then grew by 0.4 TWh in 2008, slipped in 2009 and recorded smaller gains and losses during 2010–2012. A larger hydro increase of 0.7 TWh in 2017 and a further 0.2 TWh in 2020 were encouraging, but the overall record underscores the need for more sustained growth and a broader clean electricity mix.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade