Yaounde, Cameroon: Cameroon is once again undertaking a national census—an activity authorities say occurs every 10 years. If that claim holds, it means the last census was conducted in 2016, just before the political and armed conflict in Southern Cameroons escalated and before the territory declared itself independent as Ambazonia.
On paper, a census is a routine administrative exercise. It is meant to count people, measure growth, and help governments plan for economic development, infrastructure, and social services. But in reality—especially in a conflict zone—nothing is routine. In Southern Cameroons today, this census should not just be a statistical exercise; it should be a deeply contested political act.
Even within Cameroon’s own administrative machinery, cracks are already showing. Reports from the field indicate that recruits hired to carry out the census are complaining bitterly. Many say they have not been paid the wages they were promised. Frustration is growing, and some have begun openly discouraging others from participating in the exercise. When those tasked with implementing a national project begin to abandon it, it raises serious questions about the credibility and sustainability of the process itself. But the deeper resistance is not coming from unpaid recruits—it is coming from the people of Southern Cameroons.
Here, the opposition to the census goes beyond logistics. It strikes at the heart of legitimacy. The central argument is simple but powerful: Cameroon no longer has the legal or moral authority to conduct a census in a territory that has declared itself independent. For Ambazonia, participation in such an exercise is not a civic duty; it is political submission that must be resisted.
The messages circulating across towns and villages is clear: do not cooperate. Do not give your family names to be counted for a foreign country’s census. This resistance should be driven not only by questions of sovereignty, but also by concerns over accuracy and representation. A census, by definition, is meant to provide a true picture of a population. But how can that be achieved in a territory fractured by war?
Hundreds of thousands of Southern Cameroonians have been displaced. Many now live as refugees in neighboring Cameroon regions, across Africa, and even beyond the continent. Entire communities have been uprooted. Villages have been emptied. Families have been scattered. In such conditions, any census conducted within the territory cannot possibly capture the real population. It would, at best, produce a partial count. At worst, it would generate figures that distort reality and misrepresent the true size and condition of the Ambazonian people.
And then there is also the question of who actually benefits from the census. If census data is used to allocate resources, plan development, and design social programs, then the immediate beneficiaries will likely be the regions where displaced populations now reside—primarily within Cameroon itself. In effect, the argument goes, a census in Southern Cameroons today risks reinforcing a system where the consequences of displacement benefit the host regions rather than the displaced people themselves. That is unacceptable.
There is also a broader philosophical argument to be advanced here: A census should be conducted in a context of stability, not conflict. Counting people accurately requires access, trust, and cooperation—all of which are severely compromised in a war environment. Without peace, there can be no credible data. Without credible data, there can be no meaningful planning.
From this perspective, the call is to reject the idea of a census altogether until there is peace. Until people return home. Only then can a census truly serve its purpose. For now, the dominant sentiment in Southern Cameroons must be one of resistance. Not necessarily resistance to counting people, but resistance to being counted under a system that many no longer recognize as legitimate.
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