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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 June 2025
Introduction
This chapter attempts to examine citizens’ perceptions of the nature of health policies and the effectiveness of the healthcare delivery system in Cameroon. Healthcare administration in Cameroon is organized at the national, regional, and district levels with the Ministry of Public Health responsible for overseeing the healthcare system, and assisted by several agencies, including the National Health Insurance Fund, the National AIDS Control Committee, performance-based financing, a voucher system, private health insurance, and a mutual health organization. All these entities are expected to work together to implement policies and programs to improve the well-being of Cameroonians. This chapter argues that while there has been some improvement in healthcare administration in Cameroon over the past several decades, challenges persist. Such challenges include inadequate funding, a shortage of skilled healthcare professionals, disparities in healthcare access, and inadequate compensation system for healthcare and professionals, the other major health system challenges in the century include mismanagement of funds allocated for critical health programs and the political conflict between English and French-speaking citizens of the country.
The research findings reveal that the political instability between English- and French-speaking citizens in Cameroon has negatively impacted the health system in the country. The disparity in funding of healthcare services between the above two groups has also negatively affected the development of healthcare standards and the effective implementation of health policies in the country. Although the disparity between rural and urban healthcare delivery systems has been acknowledged for more than two decades, the government and healthcare leaders have done little to improve access to affordable healthcare services in the country. Some health policy recommendation is provided that could help the government to engage in a peaceful win–win conf lict resolution process to bring the conf lict between the English- and French-speaking groups dispute. The resolution of the existing conf lict could also minimize the disparities in funding healthcare institutions, improve modern healthcare awareness, and minimize gender inequality in the provision of health services to all its citizens.
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