Fear reaches its highest level following the last eight cases of femicides reported in eight days in Cameroon. Despite the fight against the phenomenon, the challenges persist. The authorities are once again called upon.
At least eight women have been killed in the last eight days in Cameroon, that is one woman per day. The latest case occurred on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, in the Fouda neighborhood in Yaoundé. A 22-year-old man stabbed to death a 44-year-old woman, named Créscence Merline, in a hotel. He tried to flee. Caught by the neighborhood residents, he was handed over to the authorities. On him, a two-meter rope and national identity cards of other women were found.
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Following the act, the victim’s body was taken to the morgue. The alleged killer is in the hands of law enforcement. The hotel is sealed. The collective emotion and outrage continue to demand justice. Both for this case and for the hundreds of previous cases. The phenomenon of femicides, already denounced within Cameroonian society for years, is worsening.
For the first eight months of 2026, more than 60 women have been killed under horrific circumstances. Despite government measures taken and communicated to the public during a joint government press conference last June, the problem continues to grow. According to figures recorded by the Cameroonian government, the number of cases increases year by year. 50 women killed in 2023, 67 in 2024, 77 in 2025, and already more than 60 cases before the end of the eighth month of 2026. A total of about 254 women in almost four years.
In addition to the government measures being implemented without yielding lasting results, there are initiatives and actions from civil society. Civil society organizations and individual feminists are active in fighting the phenomenon through awareness, training, support for women’s empowerment, and care for victims of violence. The first national forum on the fight against femicides brought together several actors last March in Yaoundé. Advocacy containing proposed solutions to be implemented has been submitted to the authorities. Innovative proposed solutions still mingle with many challenges.
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One of the most significant concerns is repression, with legislation considered as not specifically addressing femicide cases. The adoption of the Family Code is stalled, as is the criminalization of femicides, which remains a proposal from feminist jurists.
All in all, it is undeniable that the situation worries the entire society. A collective fight involving the government and other public and private entities can accelerate curative action.
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