Maroua (Fula: Marwa 𞤥𞤢𞤪𞤱𞤢) is the capital of the Far North Region of

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the ...

, stretching along the banks of the Ferngo and Kaliao Rivers, in the foothills of the Mandara Mountains. The city had 301,371 inhabitants at the 2005 Census mainly Fulbe/

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...

ethnic group.

History

The city was occupied by the Guiziga in the 17th century and the Mofu in the 18th century. The Maroua Declaration, a

maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of the Earth's water surface areas using physiographic or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

agreement between

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

and Cameroon, was signed in Maroua on 1 June 1975.

Economy

Embroidery, leather goods, jewelry, pottery are important economic activities in the city.

Transports

The city also has the Maroua Salak Airport.

Education

The University of Maroua is based in the city.

Places of worship

Among the

places of worship A place of worship is a specially designed structure or space where individuals or a group of people such as a congregation come to perform acts of devotion, veneration, or religious study. A building constructed or used for this purpose is somet ...

, they are predominantly

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

mosques. There are also Christian churches and temples : Roman Catholic Diocese of Maroua–Mokolo (

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

), Evangelical Church of Cameroon (

World Communion of Reformed Churches The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is the largest association of Calvinist churches in the world. It has 230 member denominations in 108 countries, together claiming an estimated 80 million people, thus being the fourth-largest Chris ...

Presbyterian Church in Cameroon The Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC) is a Reformed denomination in Cameroon and a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches. It is the largest English-speaking church in Cameroon, founded by Basel Mission. In addition to its religiou ...

(

), Cameroon Baptist Convention (

Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated 51 million people in 2022 with 246 member bodies in 128 countries and territories. A voluntary association of Baptist churches, the BWA account ...

), Full Gospel Mission Cameroon (

Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...

). J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann, ‘‘Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices’’, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2010, p. 484-486

Climate

The climate is Sahelian, being hot and dry for most of the year. Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as

hot semi-arid Hot or the acronym HOT may refer to: Food and drink *Pungency, in food, a spicy or hot quality *Hot, a wine tasting descriptor Places *Hot district, a district of Chiang Mai province, Thailand ** Hot subdistrict, a sub-district of Hot Distric ...

(''BSh'').

Sport

Sports activities are recognized on football, traditional wrestling. File:Lutte traditionnelle de jeunes 03.jpg, by young boys File:Lutte traditionnelle de jeunes 02.jpg, by young girls File:Lutte traditionnelle de jeunes 05.jpg, by warriors

References

{{Capitals of Regions of Cameroon Populated places in Cameroon Far North Region (Cameroon) Provincial capitals in Cameroon