Crowds attempted to enter through a southern entrance at Olembe stadium in the capital Yaounde to watch the host nation play Comoros.
Although the stadium's capacity of 60,000 has been limited over coronavirus fears, the 60 percent cap is raised to 80 percent when Cameroon's Indomitable Lions play.
Some 50 people were injured in the crush, including two people with multiple injures and two more with serious head wounds, the ministry said. The Confederation of African Football , which runs the continent's flagship competition, said it was"investigating the situation and trying to get more details on what transpired".
Cameroon's health minister Manaouda Malachie tweeted images showing him visiting a hospital treating those hurt in the incident.The CAF will hold a"crisis meeting" with the organising committee on Tuesday morning at 9:30am , dedicated exclusively to security issues in the stadiums, a source close to CAF told AFP.Cameroon was meant to host the Africa Cup of Nations in 2019.