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This world's oldest leader - 92-year-old Paul Biya - has assured the nation's electorate "better days are ahead" as he pursues his eighth straight presidential term on Sunday.

The elderly leader has already been in office since 1982 - an additional seven-year term could extend his reign for half a century reaching almost 100.

Campaign Controversies

He defied broad demands to resign and drew backlash for making merely one public appearance, spending most of the election season on a week-and-a-half private trip to Europe.

A backlash regarding his dependence on an computer-generated political commercial, as his rivals courted supporters directly, prompted his quick return north after coming back.

Young Voters and Joblessness

This indicates for the great bulk of the population, Biya has been the exclusive ruler they experienced - above sixty percent of the nation's 30 million inhabitants are below the 25 years old.

Young political activist Marie Flore Mboussi strongly desires "different faces" as she believes "longevity in power naturally results in a kind of complacency".

"Following four decades, the citizens are tired," she says.

Young people's joblessness remains a particular issue of concern for the majority of the aspirants running in the election.

Nearly forty percent of young residents aged from 15-35 are jobless, with twenty-three percent of college-educated youth facing challenges in obtaining official jobs.

Rival Candidates

Beyond young people's job issues, the electoral process has also stirred debate, notably concerning the removal of an opposition leader from the presidential race.

The removal, confirmed by the Constitutional Council, was broadly condemned as a strategy to prevent any strong challenge to the current leader.

Twelve aspirants were authorized to contest for the presidency, featuring Issa Tchiroma Bakary and a previous supporter - each ex- Biya allies from the northern region of the country.

Voting Challenges

Within the nation's Anglophone North-West and South-West areas, where a extended insurgency continues, an poll avoidance restriction has been imposed, stopping commercial operations, movement and learning.

Insurgents who have enforced it have threatened to harm people who does vote.

Since 2017, those attempting to establish a separate nation have been battling official military.

The violence has so far resulted in at minimum 6,000 people and forced nearly five hundred thousand residents from their homes.

Election Results

Once polling concludes, the legal body has two weeks to declare the results.

The government official has previously cautioned that no aspirant is permitted to claim success beforehand.

"Those who will try to declare outcomes of the presidential election or any unofficial win announcement contrary to the rules of the republic would have broken rules and need to be prepared to encounter penalties appropriate for their violation."