The 53rd independence anniversary was celebrated in Douala on October 12, 2013.

Nigerian community in Cameroon has lauded the peaceful co-existence between the two countries during and after the Green Tree Accord, which culminated with the complete repossession of the oil-rich Bakassi peninsula by Cameroon on August 14, 2013. This remark was made by Nigerian diplomatic corps in Cameroon on October 12, 2013, during celebration of their country's 53rd Independence anniversary in Douala.

Hadiza Mustapha, Nigerian High Commissioner in Cameroon, described the peaceful co-existence in the Cameroon-Nigeria brotherly nations, with at least 160 million people altogether, as a rich human resource with huge economic potentials that must be carefully exploited to promote mutual economic growth. Business exchanges, she pointed out, are on an upward trend but needs new strategies in order to identify and make optimum use of the potentials and opportunities.

Thousands of the more than 4 million Nigerians in Cameroon turned out at the Bonanjo Party House together with a vast delegation of the Littoral Administration led by Governor Joseph Beti Assomo. The event was not just an occasion to celebrate nationhood but also bilateral achievements such as brotherhood, hospitality, economic, political and historical ties which has remained cordial over the years.

Musa Hassan, Nigerian Consul General in Douala, recalled that just recently, Cameroon and Nigeria have pledged to continue living in peace and harmony, as Bakassi peninsula was handed over on August 14, 2013. He qualified this peaceful transition that has recalled the long history of peaceful co-existence as a singular act that today stand tall in the eyes of the international community, which rightly see the two brotherly nations not only as advocates of peace, but also as architects of peace.