Editing Multiculturalism (section)

===Cameroon===
Officially known as the Republic of Cameroon, [[Cameroon]] is found in central Africa consisting of a diverse geographical and cultural area that makes it one of the most diverse countries known today. Ranging from mountains, deserts, and rainforests, to coast-lands and savanna grasslands, its diverse geography makes a large diverse population possible. This diverse geography resembles Africa as a whole and due to this, many people commonly label Cameroon as "Africa in Miniature".<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/cameroon/|title=The World Factbook – Central Intelligence Agency|website=cia.gov|language=en|access-date=26 July 2018}}</ref><ref name=":13">{{cite journal |last1=Mbenda |first1=Huguette Gaelle Ngassa |last2=Awasthi |first2=Gauri |last3=Singh |first3=Poonam K |last4=Gouado |first4=Inocent |last5=Das |first5=Aparup |title=Does malaria epidemiology project Cameroon as 'Africa in miniature'? |journal=Journal of Biosciences |date=September 2014 |volume=39 |issue=4 |pages=727–738 |doi=10.1007/s12038-014-9451-y |pmid=25116627 |s2cid=17219470 }}</ref>

==== Demographics and official languages ====
Before Cameroon's independence, it was under British and French colonial rule from 1916–1961.<ref name=":13"/> Upon gaining [[sovereignty]], a major colonial influence was evident, having both English and French become the national language to roughly 25,000,000 Cameroonian residents.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/DataQuery/|title=World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations|website=esa.un.org|access-date=26 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919061238/https://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/DataQuery/|archive-date=19 September 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{cite conference |last1=Asanga Fon |first1=Nguh Nwei |title=Can Bilingualism Survive in Cameroon? |pages=260–275 |conference=The Future of Humanities, Education and Creative Industries |date=October 2017 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338146687 }}</ref> Apart from these two major languages, a new language consisting of a mixture of French, English, and [[Cameroonian Pidgin English|Pidgin]] known as [[Camfranglais|Frananglais]] gained popularity among Cameroonian residents.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://newuh.blog/2012/12/13/cameroon-africa-in-miniature-in-what-sense/|title=Cameroon: Africa in Miniature – In what Sense?|date=13 December 2012|work=KINGSLEY SHETEH'S BLOG|access-date=26 July 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=26 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180726201806/https://newuh.blog/2012/12/13/cameroon-africa-in-miniature-in-what-sense/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Indigenous languages ====
Although these three languages are the most common in Cameroon, there are still approximately 273 [[Indigenous peoples|indigenous]] languages being spoken throughout the country, making it not only culturally diverse but linguistically as well.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/CM|title=Cameroon|website=Ethnologue|access-date=26 July 2018}}</ref> Among those who speak these indigenous languages are people from [[Bantu peoples|Bantu]], Sudanic, [[Baka people (Cameroon and Gabon)|Baka]], [[Wodaabe]] (or [[Mbororo]]) and even primitive hunter-gatherer groups known as [[Pygmy peoples|Pygmies]].<ref name=":5">{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Cameroon|title=Cameroon {{!}} Culture, History, & People|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=26 July 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite web|url=https://www.iwgia.org/en/cameroon|title=Cameroon|website=iwgia.org|language=en-gb|access-date=26 July 2018}}</ref>

==== Indigenous peoples' rights ====
Although native to Cameroonian land, they faced constant discrimination much like other indigenous groups around the world. The United Nations General Assembly ([[United Nations General Assembly|UNGA]]) adopted the United Nations' Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples ([[UNDRIP]]) in 2007. What this allowed was the protection of land and resource rights and prevented others from [[wiktionary:Exploitation|exploiting]] or violating them.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.iied.org/17448iied|title=Indigenous peoples' land rights in Cameroon: progress to date and possible futures|last1=Nguiffo|first1=Samuel|last2=Amougou|first2=Victor|last3=Schwartz|first3=Brendan|last4=Cotula|first4=Lorenzo|date=December 2017|series=IIED Briefing Papers|isbn=9781784315511|publisher=[[International Institute for Environment and Development]]|access-date=29 December 2024}}</ref>{{rp|p=2}} In 2016, a group of indigenous Baka and Bagyeli groups united to form Gbabandi. Gbabandi allowed these indigenous groups to have a form of representation and a declared list of requirements that people of Cameroon had to abide by. Among these requirements were guaranteed land rights, peoples' consent to the usage of their sacred land, traditional chiefs and the ability to participate in "local, regional, and national levels" of political and economic matters. As a result, this established a sense of justice and acknowledgment among indigenous groups in Cameroon and posed for future battles for indigenous peoples' rights.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forestpeoples.org/en/rights-land-natural-resources/news-article/2017/declaration-land-rights-gbabandi-platform-cameroon|title=Declaration on land rights from the Gbabandi Platform, Cameroon {{!}} Forest Peoples Programme|website=forestpeoples.org|language=en|access-date=26 July 2018}}</ref>