Bafoussam is the capital of the West Province of Cameroon

Cameroon

Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...

, in the Bamboutos Mountains. It is the prefecture of the Mifi department, one of three arrondissements in the department. The city had a population of 239,287 inhabitants (at the 2005 Census). The city is the region's center of trade. People are farming coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

, tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

 and tea

Tea

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...

. The city has also a coffee processing facility and brewery

Brewery

A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....

. It is the main city of the Bamiléké

Bamileke

The Bamileke is a folk whose native ancestral area is in the western highlands of Cameroon's West Province, west of the Noun River and southeast of the Bamboutos Mountains and in the Moungo region of the Littoral, Southwest, and Centre Provinces. They are a part of the Semi-Bantu ethnic groups...

 people and is home to a chief's palace. The city of Bafoussam has grown to now include the three traditional "chefferies" of Baleng, Fusap and Bamougoum. The main neighborhoods of the city are Banego, Djeleng, Famla, Kamkop, Quartier Eveché, Quartier Haussa and Tamdja.

Bafoussam has two main markets (Marché A and Marché B), several internet cafes, restaurants and supermarkets and a movie theater. Most of Bafoussam nightlife centers on the area called Akwa (so-named in honor of the neighborhood in Douala). Akwa features several bars, stores, and a live music venue, along with customary vendors of soya (grilled meat brochettes), poisson braisé (grilled fish) and other foods.

This is the birthplace of footballer Geremi and his 17 brothers and sisters, as well as the birthplace of his cousin Pierre Achille Webo.