Consequently, it handles most of the country's major exports, such as oil, cocoa and coffee, timber, metals and fruits.

Between May and December 1991, Douala was at the center of the civil disobedience campaign called the ghost town operation (ville morte) during which economic activities shut down to make the country ungovernable and to force the government to allow multi-partitism and freedom of expression.

It was renamed Douala in 1907 after the name of the natives known as Dua ala Ijaws (Njos), and became part of French Cameroon in 1919.

[13] The city of Douala is divided into seven districts (Akwa, Bassa, Bonabéri, Bonapriso, Bonanjo, Deïdo and New Bell)[14] and it has more than 120 neighbourhoods.

The archives which provide documentation about the city are based in Paris,[16] Basel,[17] Hamburg,[18] Potsdam,[19] Douala[20] and Yaoundé.

In 1905 the palace of the King Manga Ndumbe Bell (also called la Pagode) was built, and in 1906 the general plan of Gross Douala was established.

Between 1925 and 1930, during the French colonial period, the chamber of commerce, the new palace of justice, the new railway station, the vault of the Kings Bell and the catholic cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul were built.

Among those buildings are the casino, the show-room La Meublerie, the exhibition hall Cami-Toyota, Union Bank of Cameroon, Immeuble Hollando, the Baptist church, Immeuble Victoria, headquarters of CA-SCB, espace doual'art, and Orange Flagship.

Along the city's main thoroughfare lie some of Cameroon's best restaurants, coffee houses and French-style patisseries; along the waterfront, many bars and bistros may be found, commanding views of the Gulf of Guinea and nearby mangrove swamps.

Many of these are frequented by the city's large expatriate population, mainly French or Lebanese, most of whom work in the petroleum industry.

[citation needed] This form of education is common in sectors like cloth manufacturing, bread making, construction, security, and car repairing.

Individuals from these informal sectors are by far the most visibly deprived in neighborhoods such as Ndokoti, Bepanda, Village, Logbaba.

In spite of the numerous domestic and international investments, the roads remain in deplorable state largely due to embezzlement and corruption.

[citation needed] A brt network is planned for Douala, with the first 3 lines projected to open in 2024-2025.

[25][needs update] The Douala International Airport is located in the eastern part of the city.

Regional and continental destinations include Abidjan, Brazzaville, Dakar, Johannesburg, Kinshasa, Lagos, Malabo, and Nairobi.

However, it also faces some problems like other underdeveloped countries such as heavy civil service and bad climate (flood, tornado, storm) to business.

While the aforementioned percentage is doubled for rural regions, poverty is a growing problem for Douala due to its steadily increasing population.

Unlike the rural populations of Cameroon that can grow their own foods to lessen their expenses, Douala locals are disadvantaged by living in the port city where there are not many opportunities for monetary gain.