The road network of Cameroon now stands at 54,000 km, thanks to the political and economic policies of various governments since reunification.
At the dawn of reunification in October 1961, the road infrastructure in Cameroon was immediately given attention as a means of speeding up national integration. Pioneer road projects like Yaounde-Bafoussam-Bamenda saw the light of day. With growing economic prosperity from cash crop and oil export earnings, the government improved on the road network in almost all parts of the country. This led to the first classification of roads by a Presidential Decree of March 21, 1979, grouping them into four categories: national, regional, divisional and rural roads. National roads link regional headquarters to the capital, regional to divisional headquarters and divisional headquarters to sub-divisional headquarters. Rural roads on the other hand link up villages, plantations and local industrial areas.
A Ministry of Public Works decision of November 9, 1999 defined priority road networks. Cameroon counted eighteen national roads spread all over the country measuring 7,241 km, linking up Cameroon with neighbouring countries. The decision also classifies roads into six categories, depending on the level of traffic. These are roads with light, regular, uninterrupted but limited, high density and rush hour traffic congestion.
The economic crisis of the eighties greatly affected the budgetary allocations for road construction in Cameroon; from FCFA 27.8 billion in 1985/1986 to only FCFA 7.5 billion in 1992/1993. There followed a series of reforms in the sector with the Ministry of Transport putting in place a plan for road maintenance. There was also the creation of the Road Fund on April 8, 1996 and the resumption of heavy investments in road construction with over 1,000 km tarred between 1995 and 2005. In March 2003, a feasibility study on the development of a Road Master Plan was carried out and completed in February 2006. The study was meant to, among others, prepare a programme for road construction and maintenance for 20 years (2006-2025).
Meanwhile, in the past decade, government and international partners successfully carried out heavy investments in the road sector. Several roads have been tarred or rehabilitated such as Garoua-Figuil, Ngaoundéré-Garoua Boulaï, Ngaoundéré-Toubourou-Moundou, Mutengene-Kumba, Bertoua-Garoua Boulaï, Ambam-Kye Ossi, Ambam-Eking, Ebolowa-Ambam and Figuil-Maroua. More are due in the near future such as the Kumba-Mundemba-Isangele-Kumbo Abedimo, Sangmelima-Djoum-Ouesso and Bamenda-Mamfe-Eyumojock-Ekok roads.
Statistics from the Ministry of Public Works currently show that out of 50,000 km of road, about 5,000 km are tarred, 18,016 are earth while 27,693 are rural roads. Same sources also agree that roads are degrading faster while the need for roads and traffic increase by 5 per cent yearly. Only 6 per cent of classified roads are in good state, 21 per cent in a normal state, while 70 per cent are in a mediocre state and 3 per cent are in a poor state. In 2009, FCFA 236,178 billion was set aside by government for road maintenance. In 2010, the budget for road infrastructure was set at 248,963 billion with FCFA 157,928 billion reserved for investment. The National Road Council chaired by the Prime Minister and Head of Government has also shown interest in ensuring that the 2010 road maintenance and rehabilitation programme is implemented without delay.
