---
title: "Flag of Cameroon: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Cameroon flag stands for, its official 2:3 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/cameroon/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of Cameroon

**The flag of Cameroon: Three equal vertical bands of green, red and yellow, with a yellow five-pointed star centred on the red.**

Ratio 2:3 · current design adopted 1975

The star is called the star of unity and marks the 1961 merger of British Southern Cameroons with the former French territory; from 1961 to 1975 there were two stars, in the green band, one for each part. Cameroon's band order — green, red, yellow — differs from Senegal's and Mali's green, yellow, red, which is the fastest way to distinguish it before looking for the star. The three flags are otherwise the same palette in the same format. The yellow star sits on red rather than yellow, so it is always visible.

## Flags it gets confused with

*[Flag drawn on the page: Senegal, Mali]*

*Drawn at each flag’s own official ratio, which is itself the difference in some of these pairs.*

| Flag | How to tell them apart |
| --- | --- |
| Senegal | Senegal's middle band is yellow with a green star; Cameroon's is red with a yellow star. |
| Mali | Mali has no star and its middle band is yellow. |

## What the colours mean

*Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.*

- **Green** (#007A5E) — The forests of the south, and hope
- **Red** (#CE1126) — Unity — the central band
- **Yellow** (#FCD116) — The savannah of the north, and the sun

## The symbols on it

| What | What it stands for |
| --- | --- |
| Star of unity | The union of the formerly French and British territories |

- **Ratio:** 2:3
- **Current design adopted:** 1975
- **Colours:** green, red, yellow

## Common questions

### What does the flag of Cameroon look like?

Three equal vertical bands of green, red and yellow, with a yellow five-pointed star centred on the red.

### What do the colours of the Cameroon flag mean?

Green: the forests of the south, and hope. Red: unity — the central band. Yellow: the savannah of the north, and the sun.

### How do you tell the Cameroon flag from the Senegal one?

Senegal's middle band is yellow with a green star; Cameroon's is red with a yellow star.

### When was the Cameroon flag adopted?

The current design dates from 1975, and its official ratio is 2:3.

## Related pages

- [Cameroon](https://atoneplace.net/country/cameroon/)
- [The flag of Senegal](https://atoneplace.net/flag/senegal/)
- [The flag of Mali](https://atoneplace.net/flag/mali/)
- [Every flag with green in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/green/)
- [The flag of India](https://atoneplace.net/flag/india/)
- [The flag of Brazil](https://atoneplace.net/flag/brazil/)
- [The flag of Italy](https://atoneplace.net/flag/italy/)
- [The flag of Mexico](https://atoneplace.net/flag/mexico/)
- [The flag of Ireland](https://atoneplace.net/flag/ireland/)
- [The flag of South Africa](https://atoneplace.net/flag/south-africa/)
- [The flag of Jamaica](https://atoneplace.net/flag/jamaica/)
- [The flag of Pakistan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/pakistan/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]