Qibla · East Province
Qibla direction in Bertoua
To face the Kaaba in Bertoua, turn to 54.1° measured clockwise from true north, which is north-east (35.9° north of east). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 3,385 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Bertoua should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 54.1°, the Qibla of Bertoua. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 54° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Bertoua
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 35.9° towards north: the result is the bearing of 54.1°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “east” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Bertoua.
Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Bertoua, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Bertoua to Mecca points to 56.4° (north-east), 2.4° away from the correct 54.1°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 2 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.
How is the figure of 54.1° obtained? From the coordinates of Bertoua (4.5773° N, 13.6846° E) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.
Distance from Bertoua to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 3,385 km from Bertoua as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,546 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 4 h 29 min, although most pilgrims from Bertoua connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Bertoua run 2 hours behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Bertoua rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Bertoua
On 162 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Bertoua while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in May (31 days); for example, on 15 April 2027 it happens at 11:36 local time.
On 201 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in January (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 14:56.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 14:56 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 14:47 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 14:23 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 13:56 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 13:25 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 12:51 |
| 1 April 2027 | — | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 11:36 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 11:01 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 10:35 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 10:14 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 10:07 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 10:12 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 10:26 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 10:51 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 11:15 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 11:45 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 12:09 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 12:38 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 13:04 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 13:36 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 14:04 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 14:32 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 14:49 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Bertoua: at 10:18 and 10:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Bertoua compared with other cities
Compared with Yaoundé, 253 km away, the Qibla in Bertoua is turned 0.9° further anticlockwise (54.1° against 55.0°), and Mecca is 242 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Yaoundé (253 km), prays towards 55.0°, a difference of 0.9°.
Among the 14 cities in Cameroon on this site, Bertoua has the smallest Qibla bearing; the largest is 63.0° in Maroua. Across the country the direction varies by 8.9°.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Cameroon.
Qibla in cities near Bertoua
Qibla in Bertoua: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Bertoua?
It is 54.1° from true north, which is north-east: 35.9° north of east.
How far is Bertoua from Mecca?
3,385 km in a straight line over the globe, and 3,546 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Bertoua?
On 162 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Is the Qibla the same everywhere in Cameroon?
No. It ranges from 54.1° to 63.0° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 54.1° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.