In 2025, Cameroon recorded a decrease in its cereal import bill, according to official foreign trade data. Cereal purchases from abroad totaled 466.9 billion FCFA, marking a 14.1% decrease compared to 2024.
This reduction contributed to alleviating the overall import bill for plant products, which stood at 546 billion FCFA, a 12.5% year-on-year decrease. This category represents 10.4% of the country's total imports in 2025.
Rice and wheat are the main drivers of this decrease in cereal imports. Rice imports reached 268.7 billion FCFA, showing a 15.6% year-on-year decrease and representing 5.1% of the country's total imports. Similarly, the import bill for wheat and meslin decreased by 12.3% year-on-year, reaching 187.8 billion FCFA, or 3.6% of total import expenditure.
In contrast, maize remains marginal in cereal purchases from abroad, with an import bill of only 10.3 billion FCFA in 2025, representing just 0.2% of the country's total imports.
Cereals accounted for 8.9% of Cameroon's import expenditure in 2025. This decrease comes in the context of the implementation of the country's import substitution policy, integrated into the National Development Strategy 2020-2030. This strategy aims to stimulate local production and reduce dependence on imported food products.
It is important to interpret this development with caution, as the decline in imports could reflect an improvement in local supply, but also cyclical factors such as currency tensions, increased costs or an adjustment in domestic demand due to inflation.
The trend in external cereal purchases, particularly rice and wheat, remains a key indicator for assessing the effectiveness of public policies on food security and structural transformation of the Cameroonian economy. The Cameroonian government continues to rely on the import substitution policy to reduce its dependence on imports and transform its economy.
