From our correspondent in Bafoussam, Emmanuel Jules Ntap

Many inmates in Cameroon remain behind bars simply because they lack the financial means to settle court-imposed fines. This year, the Françoise Puene Freedom Foundation—a humanitarian NGO—stepped in to cover these costs for 38 young detainees aged 16 to 28, allowing them to regain their freedom.

Since 2014, the foundation has intervened eight times to support indigent prisoners by paying their court fines, offering both humanitarian aid and legal assistance.

« Across Cameroon, we noticed Bafoussam Central Prison was severely overcrowded, primarily with young people—many just 17 or 18 years old, though some were as old as 28 », explains Françoise Puene, president of the foundation.

Court-ordered financial penalties are a major driver of prison overcrowding in the country.

« Our prisons are bursting at the seams. Many inmates can’t afford to pay their court fines, even after completing their sentences », admits Adray Epente Tazeu, Secretary-General of the Western Region Governor’s services.

Efred Ngayeu, one of the freed inmates, shared, « I’m overjoyed they paid for me. I spent nine months behind bars instead of the six months I was sentenced to ».

Under Cameroon’s Penal Procedure Code, convicts must settle financial penalties or restitution orders before or after serving their sentences.

The 38 former detainees from Bafoussam had court fines ranging from 40,000 to 150,000 Central African CFA francs—approximately 60 to 228 euros.