Briefing Paper

Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis: How the Catholic Church Can Promote Dialogue

Cameroon faces critical risks going into this electoral year. Boko Haram remains active in the Far North, instability prevails along the eastern border with the Central African Republic and popular discontent continues to roil large cities. But the insurgency in Anglophone areas, and the clumsy government response, is now the main threat to the country’s stability. A negotiated solution is vital. The Catholic Church, if it can resolve or keep under wraps its internal divisions and project neutrality, would be well placed to help bring it about. International actors should support Church initiatives
and encourage greater unity among the clergy. But the onus is also on the Church itself to display greater coherence.