Bertoua

Bertoua
Coordinates	4 ° 34 '  N , 13 ° 41'  E Coordinates: 4 ° 34 '  N , 13 ° 41'  E
Basic data
Country	Cameroon
region	Est
height	664 m
Residents	218,000 (2011)

Bertoua (German: Bertua) is a city in Cameroon . It is the capital of the province of Est and the department of Lom-et-Djérem . With 218,000 inhabitants (2011) it is the only regional center in the region.

location

The location of the city is characterized by the transition zone from woodland to savannah.

history

Bertoua (actually: Gamane ) is an old central place of the Gbaya and in pre-colonial times was the seat of a chief chieftainship, which was influenced early on by the neighboring Islamic empires to the north. After 1903 the city came under German sovereignty. The seat of the district administration at this time, however, was Dume further south-west . Only after the First World War, under French mandate rule, did Bertoua become the administrative center for Eastern Cameroon.

economy

Bertoua is the only urban settlement and therefore also the economic center of the province. Sectors of activity are agriculture ( tobacco production ), forestry and market traffic, which is frequented by the village settlements in the wider area. Tourism is of no importance. Bertoua has a gas station, pharmacy and hospital.

traffic

The connection is via asphalt roads from Nanga-Eboko and Abong-Mbang and an airport. The nearest train station is in Bélabo (approx. 80 km northwest on the Yaoundé - Ngaoundéré route ), which can also be reached via an asphalt road. In the east, routes continue to Batouri and Yokadouma .

religion

The city has been the seat of a Catholic diocese since 1983, and an archdiocese since November 1994 ( Archbishopric Bertoua ).

literature

• Regina Fuchs, Cameroon , Bielefeld 2001