Cameroon's net migration was -15,379 in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 136.61% from 42,008 in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | -15,379 | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | -9,888 | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 42,008 | 2015 |
| Highest | 96,599 | 2014 |
| Lowest | -139,974 | 1982 |
| Average since 2016 | -10,474 | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 0 | 1960 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, Cameroon's net migration fell 1,487 on 2024 (from -13,892 to -15,379).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −62.13 and a typical year strayed about 25,385 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 103,499 in 2014 and the biggest yearly fall was 167,819 in 1982. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, Cameroon had the 166th highest value of the 217 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Cameroon | -15,379 | 2025 |
| World | 0 | 2025 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | -223,909 | 2025 |
| Lower middle income | -3.12 million | 2025 |
Closest to Cameroon in the 2025 ranking
- Central African Republic — 163rd of 217: -14,693
- Togo — 164th of 217: -15,010
- Nigeria — 165th of 217: -15,258
- Guinea — 167th of 217: -16,282
- Yemen, Rep. — 168th of 217: -16,291
- Hungary — 169th of 217: -16,331
What this measures
Net migration is the net total of migrants during the period, that is, the number of immigrants minus the number of emigrants, including both citizens and noncitizens.
Limitations: International migration is the component of population change most difficult to measure and estimate reliably. Thus, the quality and quantity of the data used in the estimation and projection of net migration varies considerably by country. Furthermore, the movement of people across international boundaries, which is very often a response to changing socio-economic, political and environmental forces, is subject to a great deal of volatility. Refugee movements, for instance, may involve large numbers of people moving across boundaries in a short time.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.
All 66 values
| Year | Net migration |
|---|---|
| 2025 | -15,379 |
| 2024 | -13,892 |
| 2023 | -4,798 |
| 2022 | -4,798 |
| 2021 | -9,888 |
| 2020 | -9,888 |
| 2019 | -12,255 |
| 2018 | -9,184 |
| 2017 | -37,912 |
| 2016 | 13,255 |
| 2015 |
Net migration in nearby economies
- Angola — -3,524 (2025)
- Benin — -7,847 (2025)
- Botswana — -5,665 (2025)
- Burkina Faso — -27,130 (2025)
- Burundi — -34,727 (2025)
- Cabo Verde — -1,284 (2025)
- Central African Republic — -14,693 (2025)
- Chad — -123,104 (2025)
- Comoros — -2,127 (2025)
- Congo, Dem. Rep. — -27,309 (2025)
- Congo, Rep. — -2,999 (2025)
- Côte d'Ivoire — 11,305 (2025)
- Equatorial Guinea
More social protection & labor data for Cameroon
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asylum — 408,613 (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 28.63% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 39.66% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 34.15% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 57.18% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 74.49% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Cameroon's net migration?
- -15,379 in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How does Cameroon rank?
- 166th highest of 217 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in net migration unusual for Cameroon?
- In 2025, Cameroon's net migration fell 1,487 on 2024 (from -13,892 to -15,379). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −62.13 and a typical year strayed about 25,385 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
- Where does this data come from?
- The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SM.POP.NETM, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.
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