President Returns After 10 Weeks in Europe, Longest Absence in Four Decades

Cameroon’s President Paul Biya has returned to the country after the longest recorded stay abroad since he came to power more than four decades ago. The 93-year-old leader, who is the world’s oldest head of state, arrived at Nsimalen International Airport in Yaounde on a chartered flight from Geneva, Switzerland, after spending more than 10 weeks outside the country.

Biya left Cameroon on 7 June for what the presidential office described as a ‘short private visit to Europe’. The president, accompanied by First Lady Chantal Biya, landed at around 4.45pm local time before leaving the airport in a motorcade heading to the Etoudi Unity Palace. Biya waved through a partially open window to hundreds of supporters of the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) who lined the streets of the capital to welcome him back, carrying party paraphernalia and banners praising the president.

His prolonged absence sparked widespread speculation about his health and his ability to govern, despite repeated government assurances that Biya would return soon. The absence also raised questions about political succession in Cameroon, a country where power is heavily concentrated in the hands of the president. Several opposition politicians had previously asked the Constitutional Council to consider whether someone needed to carry out the duties of head of state while Biya was not in Cameroon.

Under Cameroon’s constitution, in the absence of a vice president, the president of the Senate must act temporarily if the presidency is declared vacant due to death, resignation, or permanent incapacity. Biya has not appointed a vice president even though the position was reintroduced in April. Critics say the lack of a clear succession framework creates uncertainty about a possible transition of power, particularly if Biya is no longer able to govern.