18/12/2025
Do Cameroonians know who represents them at the regional level? Can they name their regional councillors or explain what Regional Councils are meant to do? For many citizens across the country, the answer is no.
Despite being elected through a formal process, Cameroon’s Regional Councils remain largely invisible to the populations they are supposed to serve. Five years after their creation as part of decentralisation reforms, these bodies have failed to make a tangible impact on everyday life, with many people unaware they even exist.
An MMI investigation reveals widespread public ignorance about the councils’ roles, leadership and responsibilities. In several regions, residents confuse Regional Councils with the office of the governor, while others say they have never seen a single project implemented in their name. This disconnect raises serious questions about accountability, transparency and the sincerity of decentralisation in Cameroon.
Created following the Major National Dialogue to ease tensions—particularly in the conflict-hit Anglophone regions—the councils were meant to bring governance closer to the people. Instead, critics argue they remain underfunded, underpowered and overshadowed by a highly centralised state, with some municipalities controlling larger budgets than entire regions.
As newly elected Regional Council presidents take office, the central question remains: can institutions that citizens do not know—and do not feel—truly serve as engines of local development, or will they continue to exist only on paper?
MMI News
