Can the world's oldest leader retain the title and woo a nation of youthful voters?
This planet's oldest head of state - 92-year-old Paul Biya - has pledged Cameroon's voters "the future holds promise" as he aims for his 8th straight presidential term on Sunday.
The nonagenarian has remained in power for over four decades - another 7-year term could keep him in power for half a century reaching almost 100.
Election Controversies
He resisted broad demands to leave office and drew backlash for only showing up for a single campaign event, devoting much of the campaign period on a 10-day personal visit to Europe.
Negative reaction concerning his use of an AI-generated campaign video, as his challengers actively wooed constituents directly, prompted his quick return to the northern region upon his arrival.
Youth Population and Unemployment
It means that for the great bulk of the population, Biya remains the sole leader they experienced - above sixty percent of the nation's 30 million inhabitants are younger than the quarter century mark.
Young advocate Marie Flore Mboussi strongly desires "fresh leadership" as she maintains "longevity in power typically causes a type of complacency".
"Following four decades, the population are weary," she states.
Employment challenges for youth remains a particular talking point for nearly all the candidates competing in the election.
Approximately forty percent of youthful residents aged from 15 and 35 are unemployed, with twenty-three percent of college-educated youth encountering difficulties in obtaining official jobs.
Rival Candidates
Apart from young people's job issues, the election system has generated controversy, particularly regarding the exclusion of Maurice Kamto from the leadership competition.
The removal, upheld by the legal authority, was widely criticised as a strategy to stop any significant opposition to the incumbent.
A dozen contenders were cleared to contest for the country's top job, comprising an ex-government official and a previous supporter - both previous Biya allies from the northern region of the nation.
Election Difficulties
Within the nation's English-speaking Northwest and South-West territories, where a extended separatist conflict ongoing, an election boycott lockdown has been imposed, stopping business activities, transport and education.
The separatists who have imposed it have warned to target individuals who casts a ballot.
Since 2017, those attempting to establish a separate nation have been battling official military.
The conflict has so far resulted in at least 6k lives and forced nearly half a million residents from their homes.
Election Results
Once polling concludes, the highest court has two weeks to reveal the findings.
The security chief has already warned that none of the contenders is permitted to announce winning beforehand.
"Candidates who will attempt to announce results of the presidential election or any unofficial win announcement in violation of the laws of the nation would have crossed the red line and should be ready to encounter consequences commensurate to their offense."
