According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Cameroon attracted a total of $925 million in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2024.
The volume of investment Cameroon received, according to UNCTAD, is equivalent to 529 billion CFA francs at the current exchange rate of the US dollar. This figure represents a 15.7% year-on-year increase. In 2023, the country received only $799 million in FDI, or 457 billion CFA francs.
Thanks to the continued interest of foreign investors in 2024, Cameroon once again surpassed the $900 million FDI mark.
FDI inflows had dropped to $675 million in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and were $799 million in 2023.
In 2024, Cameroon ranks as the fourth-largest FDI destination among the 10 Central African countries listed in the UNCTAD report. Specifically, the economic engine of the CEMAC (Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Chad, and CAR) trails the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, and Chad.
The top three FDI destinations in the subregion are completed by Gabon, which received $1.145 billion (654.6 billion CFA francs) in 2024, while Chad attracted $1.019 billion (582.6 billion CFA francs).
UNCTAD’s report does not specify the main sources of FDI for these countries. However, it is officially acknowledged that Cameroon owes most of its FDI to China. Since the 2000s, China has become Cameroon’s leading foreign investor.
This dominance of Chinese investment in Cameroon has been further strengthened since the 2010s, with the launch of first-generation structural projects such as bridges, roads, and dams.
