Number of cattle in Cameroon
Cameroon: Number of cattle was 5.94 million animals in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
5.94 million animals
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
45th
of 197 countries
All-time high
6.07 million animals
in 2015
All-time low
1.60 million animals
in 1964
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Number of cattle in Cameroon, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
The most recent figure for number of cattle in Cameroon is 5.94 million animals, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of cattle in Cameroon peaked at 6.07 million animals in 2015 and was at its lowest, 1.60 million animals, in 1964.
That places Cameroon 45th out of 197 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Number of cattle in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | animals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.75 million animals | — |
| 1962 | 1.75 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 1.85 million animals | +5.7% |
| 1964 | 1.60 million animals | -13.5% |
| 1965 | 1.74 million animals | +8.8% |
| 1966 | 1.88 million animals | +8.2% |
| 1967 | 1.85 million animals | -1.7% |
| 1968 | 1.90 million animals | +2.7% |
| 1969 | 2.10 million animals | +10.5% |
| 1970 | 2.33 million animals | +10.7% |
| 1971 | 2.50 million animals | +7.5% |
| 1972 | 2.33 million animals | -7.0% |
| 1973 | 2.33 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 2.40 million animals | +3.2% |
| 1975 | 2.60 million animals | +8.3% |
| 1976 | 2.75 million animals | +5.8% |
| 1977 | 2.92 million animals | +6.1% |
| 1978 | 3.00 million animals | +2.8% |
| 1979 | 3.10 million animals | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 3.68 million animals | +18.7% |
| 1981 | 3.78 million animals | +2.8% |
| 1982 | 3.51 million animals | -7.2% |
| 1983 | 3.43 million animals | -2.3% |
| 1984 | 3.56 million animals | +3.8% |
| 1985 | 4.15 million animals | +16.6% |
| 1986 | 4.26 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1987 | 4.36 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 4.47 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1989 | 4.58 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 4.70 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1991 | 4.70 million animals | +0.1% |
| 1992 | 4.70 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 4.70 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 4.70 million animals | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 4.65 million animals | -1.1% |
| 1996 | 4.62 million animals | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 4.74 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1998 | 4.85 million animals | +2.3% |
| 1999 | 5.50 million animals | +13.5% |
| 2000 | 5.88 million animals | +6.9% |
| 2001 | 5.80 million animals | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 5.60 million animals | -3.4% |
| 2003 | 5.80 million animals | +3.6% |
| 2004 | 5.90 million animals | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 6.00 million animals | +1.7% |
| 2006 | 6.00 million animals | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6.00 million animals | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 5.05 million animals | -15.9% |
| 2009 | 5.00 million animals | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 4.84 million animals | -3.1% |
| 2011 | 5.08 million animals | +5.0% |
| 2012 | 5.53 million animals | +8.7% |
| 2013 | 5.81 million animals | +5.0% |
| 2014 | 5.95 million animals | +2.5% |
| 2015 | 6.07 million animals | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 5.83 million animals | -3.9% |
| 2017 | 5.82 million animals | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 5.81 million animals | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 5.80 million animals | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 5.81 million animals | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 5.90 million animals | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 5.91 million animals | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 5.92 million animals | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 5.94 million animals | +0.3% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 5.94 million animals is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.73 million animals, 2.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 5.94 million animals is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.41 million animals, 2.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.82 million animals | 1.60 million animals | 2.10 million animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.62 million animals | 2.33 million animals | 3.10 million animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.98 million animals | 3.43 million animals | 4.58 million animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.79 million animals | 4.62 million animals | 5.50 million animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.70 million animals | 5.00 million animals | 6.00 million animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.65 million animals | 4.84 million animals | 6.07 million animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.90 million animals | 5.81 million animals | 5.94 million animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More agriculture & rural data for Cameroon
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 0.9031 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1685 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 332.28 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4433 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 14.9% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of cattle in Cameroon?
- Number of cattle in Cameroon was 5.94 million animals in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of cattle recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 6.07 million animals in 2015.
- What is the lowest number of cattle recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.60 million animals in 1964.
- How does Cameroon rank for number of cattle?
- Cameroon ranks 45th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of cattle rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cameroon data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of cattle. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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