Cameroon does not have a comprehensive regime in place for all personal data, but it has sectoral regulation. In addition, the national Constitution amended by the Law No. 96-06 of 18 January 1996, guarantees privacy of communications in its preamble, stating that “the privacy of all correspondence is inviolate. No interference may be allowed except by virtue of decisions emanating from the Judicial Power”. The 2010 Cybersecurity and Cybercrime law also provides for the privacy of communications under Art. 41. The obligation for service providers to guarantee users’ privacy and the confidentiality of information is covered under Arts. 42 and 26. Also Decree No. 2013/0399/PM of 27 February 2013 Laying Down the Rules for the Protection of Consumers of Electronic Communications Services. Within the CEMAC zone the E-Communications Consumer Protection Decree urges operators to guarantee the confidentiality of electronic communications and data on their networks.

According to Art. 25, Section I of Law No. 2010/012 of 21 December 2010 on Cybersecurity and Cybercrime in Cameroon, network operators and providers of electronic communications services have the obligation to keep connection and traffic data for a period of ten years. This is despite the sub-regional legislation of CEMAC, to which Cameroon belongs, provides for a maximum period of two years during which the States can allow operators to keep traffic data for security reasons.

According to Art. 10.1 of the Law No. 2010/013 governing electronic communications in Cameroon, a license is issued to any natural or legal person to establish and operate in the telecom sector.

Cameroon has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

Cameroon has a telecommunications authority: Agence de Régulation des Télécommunications (ART). However, it is reported that this entity is not fully independent.

It is reported that there is an obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Cameroon to deliver telecom services to end users. It is practiced in the mobile sector and in the fixed sector based on commercial agreements.

The incumbent telecom provider, CAMTEL, is a fully state-owned enterprise.

It is reported that Cameroon does not mandate functional separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, there is an obligation of accounting separation since 2015.

Cameroon has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Cameroon lacks a comprehensive framework in place that provides effective protection of trade secrets, but there are provisions addressing disclosure, acquisition or use of confidential information in the course of industrial or commercial activities by third parties in Art. 6 of Annex VIII of the Bangui Agreement ratified by 17 French-speaking States, including Cameroon since 2002.

Cameroon has a clear regime of copyright exceptions, which enable the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission (Art. 29 of Law No. 2000/011). The regime follows the fair use model. In addition, the Revised Bangui Agreement, which is a regional intellectual property law that is not only a regional convention applicable in all member states but also serves as a national intellectual property law in Cameroon and each of the other member states, contains provisions on copyright in Annex VII: Chapter IV (Limitations to Economic Rights) and establishes a regime of copyright exceptions.

Copyright is not properly enforced online in Cameroon. The rate of unlicensed software installation in the country was reportedly 80% in 2017 (above the 56% rate of Middle Eastern and African countries), for an estimated commercial value of unlicensed software of USD 20 million

Cameroon has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

According to the Bangui Agreement, ratified by 17 French-speaking States, including Cameroon, applicants resident outside the territory of the member States must file through an agent selected in one of those member States (Section III, Art. 8). The professional status of agent accredited to the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI) is governed by the Regulations on the profession of Authorised Agent before the OAPI.

Cameroon is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).