Home
  English
  Arabic
  Russian
  Chinese
Help the victims of war: make a donation to the ICRC today!
Section
The ICRC in the Central African Republic
©ICRC/M. Limoner/CF-E-00283
Parents in Haut-Mbomoue receive news from their child, separated from them as a result of violence.
Despite an all-inclusive political dialogue launched in December 2008, the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) remains volatile. Security conditions have deteriorated in parts of the north and east. Since August 2009, the ICRC has been assisting people affected by violence in Haut M'Bomou prefecture following incursions by the Lord's Resistance Army.

The ICRC, which arrived in the CAR in 1997, has boosted its presence and activities to provide assistance and protection to victims of the continuing armed violence which started at the end of 2005. In addition to its delegation in Bangui, the organization has three sub-delegations in Paoua, Kaga-Bandoro and Birao, in the north.

The ICRC visits people held in various places of detention and documents alleged incidents of abuse committed against civilians by bearers of weapons. It restores links between family members separated by the violence.

The organization distributes basic household items, food and seed to vulnerable people, notably civilians displaced by fighting, and provides training to enhance their capacity to produce crops and rear livestock. To improve access to water and sanitation, the ICRC drills and repairs wells, protects water points, builds latrines and familiarizes the population with basic hygiene.

The ICRC promotes international humanitarian law among various target groups, including the national authorities, bearers of weapons, civil society and community leaders. It supports the Central African Red Cross Society’s programmes for emergency preparedness, the restoration of family links and the promotion of humanitarian principles.

Personnel (2009): 131 staff, including 25 expatriates

Key document
    20-10-2009
    Central African Republic: thousands affected by violence in Haut-Mbomou
    Violence resulting from the presence of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has caused the displacement of several thousand civilians in south-eastern Central African Republic, currently the scene of skirmishes between the LRA and the Ugandan armed forces. ICRC emergency aid is reaching those hardest hit.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Central African Republic)
    Operational update Includes Photo

Feature
    22-12-2008
    Central African Republic: living in fear of attacks
    As humanitarian aid is distributed to the remote villages in the north of the country, the ICRC's Angela Hoyt finds out how people are coping with the effects of armed conflict, banditry and other problems.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Central African Republic)
    Feature Includes Photo

    8-8-2008
    Central African Republic: the road home is paved with fear and poverty
    Several thousand people fled the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2002 and 2003 for the refugee camps of Yoroungou, Chad. Now, they have begun the journey home to their villages in the north-west of the CAR.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Central African Republic)
    Feature Includes Photo

ICRC film
    18-1-2008
    Central African Republic: stranded in the bush
    Film showing the impact of violence in northern parts of the Central African Republic, that has left villages torched, people attacked and killed, children kidnapped. Tens of thousands have fled, scattering deeper into the equatorial forest and setting up makeshift camps, where they rely on aid to survive.
    (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\From the field)
    ICRC film Includes Video

Interview
    19-2-2008
    Central African Republic: the ICRC gives its views on humanitarian action in the country
    During a meeting with some national journalists, Jean-Nicolas Marti, the ICRC’s head of delegation in Bangui, took stock of the organization’s activities in the country in 2007 and outlined the principles guiding its action in 2008. The coordination of humanitarian action and the protection and assistance of victims of the violence have to be tailored to the uncertain and precarious situation.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Central African Republic)
    Interview

Operational update
Photo Collection
    29-1-2009
    Central African Republic: water for a rainy country, care for scratched legs … and an original use for ICRC tarpaulins
    The Central African Republic has suffered war and insecurity for the last 40 years. The ICRC is one of the few agencies operating throughout the country, including the remote northern villages. The organization works with detainees, promotes international humanitarian law and assists the tens of thousands affected by the situation.
    (Info resources\Photos\Africa)
    Photo Collection Includes Photo

    31-7-2007
    Central African Republic: a matter of survival for the displaced
    Thousands of people in north western Central African Republic abandoned their homes and took refuge in the forest when fighting between government forces and armed rebels broke out in 2006. The ICRC is providing essential household items to over 13,000 families living a precarious existence between stability and flight.
    (Info resources\Photos\Africa)
    Photo Collection Includes Photo

Press article
    2-1-2008
    Unrest in the Central African Republic
    Larger than France, with a population of just four million, the Central African Republic is the world’s sixth poorest country. Increased insecurity and a series of uprisings in the north have plunged the country into a deep crisis. Article published in the Red Cross Red Crescent Magazine, No 3, 2007.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Central African Republic)
    Press article Includes Photo



go to top of page
Home | Site map | Search | What's new | Contacts | Copyright | Privacy policy  | RSS
© 2010  International Committee of the Red Cross
21-03-2010