Digital Rights at a glance
Cameroon has made meaningful institutional and legal progress on cybersecurity, and is getting up to date concerning its international engagements and data protection. However, the implementation of digital rights and data protection safeguards is lagging behind with significant needs of rights enforcement, respect of freedom and privacy, institutional capacity building and citizens awareness.
Key commitments
Malabo Convention 🟠
Cameroon is a signatory of the Malabo Convention (2021) but has not yet ratified it.
Budapest Convention 🟢
Cameroon has been party to the Budapest Convention since 2024.
Data protection law
The Law No. 2024/017 of 23 December 2024 on the Protection of Personal Data in Cameroon provides a specific legal framework to regulate the processing, storage, and transfer of personal data both within Cameroon and across its borders.
Existence of a Data Protection Authority 🟠
The Personal Data Protection Authority was created by the Law on the Protection of Personal Data in Cameroon in 2024 but there has been no implementation decree to set it up.
The National Agency of Information, Communication and Technologies (ANTIC) created in 2002 is responsible for the the promotion and monitoring of public policies on information and communication technologies and the regulation, control and monitoring of security of information and communication systems.
Cybercrime law
Cameroon’s Law No. 2010/012 of 21 December 2010 on cybersecurity and cybercrime sets security rules for electronic networks and information systems and criminalizes cyber offenses.
It is however criticised for its use against freedom of expression.
State of play
Cameroon has successfully established legislative foundations to combat cybercrime. Institutional structures such as ANTIC provide an oversight mechanism for national cybersecurity guidelines. The regulatory landscape is modernizing with the adoption of the comprehensive Law No. 2024/017 on data protection and the ongoing alignment with the Malabo Convention guidelines to protect digital processing across borders.
However, the implementation is severely hindered by resource constraints, institutional capacity limits, and vague enforcement mechanisms. Cybercrime legislation continues to draw criticism for being weaponized against freedom of expression, and significant public ignorance persists regarding legal remedies and reporting procedures for digital violations.
Major issues such as digital literacy, dis and mis-information, online harassment and breach of personal data mainly targeting women and marginalized groups persist and are not addressed properly either by regulations or their implementation.
There is also a lack of transparency regarding law enforcement and digital surveillance and the regular use of network disruption casts a shadow over digital rights.
Recommendations
1. Bridge the public knowledge deficit and promote a digital citizenship:
- Implement targeted training programs for judges, magistrates, and law enforcement officers on human-rights-compliant interpretations of digital laws.
- Integrate cybersecurity and media and information literacy into school curricula so that citizens know how and where to report digital offenses and aquire the critical thinking tools needed to navigate digital spaces safely and protect their personal data.
- Organise joint capacity-building workshops between state regulatory bodies (such as ANTIC), civil society organizations, and local media to foster mutual understanding, uphold human rights online, and build collective resilience against digital harms and disinformation.
2. Amend the 2010 Law on Cybersecurity to prevent its abuse against freedom of expression, reinforce its regulations on mis and dis-information while strengthening the operational capacity of ANTIC and data authorities.
3. Ratify and domesticate the Malabo Convention and develop a clear and inclusive national implementation plan.
4. Establish partnerships and a more structured mechanism for dialogue between institutions (including ANTIC), technology companies, telecommunication operators, civil society and journalists to ensure the laws respond to needs and protect rights.
Partners of Digitalise Youth who contributed to this section:
Elsa Rose Cheping, Badal Fohmoh, Fawoh Nancy, Melvin Songwe
