Cameroon: Budget Transparency Score 2025 Improves, Participation Drops

• Cameroon's budget transparency score improved by 8 points to 58 out of 100 in 2025.
• The country now ranks second in Africa for budget transparency, behind Benin.
• This improvement is largely due to the online publication of audit reports by the Chambre des comptes.
• Citizen participation in the budgetary process significantly declined from 20 points in 2023 to 9 points in 2025.
• Budgetary oversight remained stable at 33 points, according to the Open Budget Survey.

Lawyers advising on public sector engagements or investments in Cameroon should leverage the increased availability of public financial audit reports for enhanced due diligence and risk assessment.

Cameroon has achieved a notable improvement in its budget transparency score, reaching 58 out of 100 in 2025. This represents an increase of eight points from its 2023 score of 50. The data, derived from the International Budget Partnership's (IBP) Open Budget Survey (OBS) and subsequently relayed by the Cameroonian Ministry of Finance, positions the nation favorably within the African context. Specifically, the country now ranks second on the continent for budget transparency, trailing only Benin, which recorded a score of 77 points.

Despite the commendable progress in transparency, the latest Open Budget Survey 2025 reveals a concerning trend in citizen participation within Cameroon's budgetary process. The country's score for public involvement experienced a substantial decline, falling from 20 points in 2023 to a mere 9 points in 2025. This figure stands significantly below the global average for citizen participation, which is reported at 17 points, highlighting a gap in the engagement of the populace with public financial decisions.

In contrast to the fluctuating scores in transparency and participation, the aspect of budgetary oversight has maintained stability. This category, which evaluates the roles and effectiveness of institutions such as the Parliament and other supreme audit bodies, registered a consistent score of 33 out of 100. While the Chambre des comptes Cameroun audit has contributed to transparency, the broader framework for citizen engagement in budget formulation and monitoring appears to be weakening, posing questions for the future of Cameroon citizen budget participation.

The International Budget Partnership (IBP) conducts its Open Budget Survey every two years, collaborating with national partners to assess countries across three fundamental pillars: budget transparency, public participation, and budget oversight. The comprehensive evaluation provides a critical benchmark for understanding a nation's commitment to sound public financial management. The recent findings for Cameroon, while celebrating improved access to public financial information, simultaneously underscore an urgent need to bolster citizen involvement and strengthen the mechanisms for controlling state expenditures.

For legal professionals and investors engaging with Cameroon's public sector, the enhanced Cameroon budget transparency score 2025, particularly due to the online availability of audit reports, presents a valuable opportunity. Lawyers advising on public sector engagements or investments in Cameroon should leverage the increased availability of public financial audit reports for enhanced due diligence and risk assessment. This improved data environment can facilitate more informed decision-making and risk mitigation strategies. However, the decline in Cameroon citizen budget participation warrants attention for broader governance considerations and potential future policy shifts, as robust public engagement is often linked to long-term stability and accountability.

Lawyers advising on public sector engagements or investments in Cameroon should leverage the increased availability of public financial audit reports for enhanced due diligence and risk assessment. While transparency improves, the decline in citizen participation warrants attention for broader governance considerations and potential future policy shifts.

Source: Original reporting via Actu Cameroun