The death of a relative or a friend can be a traumatic experience. When the death occurs overseas, family and friends in the UK can feel additional distress as they are unfamiliar with foreign procedures and perhaps are unable to communicate in the language of the country where the death occurred. Consular Directorate of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and our High Commission in Yaounde are ready to help as far as they can. You may be uncertain about what to do next or who to contact for advice. These notes are designed to help you through the practical arrangements you will need to make. You should be aware that Cameroonian procedures differ significantly to those in the United Kingdom and that, while we understand your need for arrangements to be made quickly, this is not always possible.
The information contained in this document is not meant to be a definitive statement of the law, nor is it to be taken as a substitute for independent legal advice.

Autopsies (Post Mortems)
These are generally only carried out when the cause of death is suspicions (examples include suicide or murder) although it is frequently difficult to obtain autopsy reports. An autopsy will usually be carried out upon the request of the police and/or a request by a legal representative. Even in these circumstances it is possible that an autopsy will not go ahead due to insufficient time/money/medical staff in the hospital concerned. It is possible that the relatives of the deceased will be asked for money in order to fund the autopsy. If an autopsy has been requested but not carried out, the body cannot be released to the family.

It should be noted that the standard of autopsies carried out in Cameroon falls somewhat below the standard carried out in the UK. In most cases it will be preferable to have any autopsy carried out in the UK, once the body has been repatriated.

Normally a copy of the autopsy report will be requested by the relevant Diplomatic mission in Cameroon although this process can be very long and may not always result in a copy of the report being made available.
The High Commission has not come across any instances of organs being retained, either with or without the consent of next of kin.

Mortuary Facilities
There are cold storage facilities available in most major cities and towns in Cameroon although the electricity supply is notoriously unreliable. Whilst hospitals have emergency generators, these are not always operational.

Repatriation and Burial
Both repatriation and local burial are possible.
Authorisation to repatriate the body can be given by Cameroon Assistance Sanitaire (Tel: 342 1414) which, together with the Diplomatic mission concerned, will arrange repatriation. Costs are approximately £7000 for repatriation to the UK.

Local burial is possible with the assistance of the same organisation. Alternatively, local churches and missionary organisations can also help.
Cremation is not permitted in Cameroon and there are no facilities for doing so.

Please note that an inquest will not take place in the UK if a local burial or local cremation takes place.

Registration of the death
Cameroon issues death certificates in French/English. Given the excessive bureaucracy in Cameroon, this can take some time to be issued; possibly several months. Cameroonian death certificates do not give details of the cause of death, as would be the case in the UK. You may wish to register the death at the British High Commission. This carries a statutory fee (currently CFA 55,030 to register the death with a copy of the certificate costing CFA 69,880).

Return of Personal Effects
Normally returned to the family using a private courier company. Personal effects are not permitted to be returned alongside the body.

Police/Judicial Inquiries
As explained above, this will only happen if the death is suspicious. The investigating authority will not normally make a copy of their report available to the family although one can be requested (normally via the relevant Diplomatic mission).

The Cameroonian legal system is based on the French system. Any inquiry is likely to be lengthy and the family may be asked for costs/inducements (bribes) for the case to be pursued.

Legal Aid
Not available in Cameroon.

Compensation
No government compensation schemes exist but, in theory at least, it is possible to claim damages from the accused or their families. Given the very high levels of corruption endemic in Cameroon, it is possible that officials have been bribed.