Fresh violence threatens progress in CAR
Earlier this year Central African Republic looked like it might be on the road to recovery – displaced people made tentative forays to return home, the Government was focused on institution-building and shoring up peace and recovery. But much of this progress has been set back by a fresh wave of violence that broke out in 2017. UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Stephen O’Brien, recently returned from CAR with a clear message. “If we do not act now and keep the faith, we will see increasing need and even greater vulnerability of already weakened people; and an even greater stress on the capacity of humanitarians and funding [to respond]”. Nearly one in two people in CAR need humanitarian aid or protection to survive. Yet meeting these needs amid ongoing insecurity and severe aid shortages, is a daunting challenge.
All photos by Yaye Nabo Séne/UNOCHA