Attachments
IOM VISION
IOM intends to provide multisectoral humanitarian assistance to conflict and disaster-affected populations in the Central African Republic (CAR) and support communities transitioning out of conflict to help generate early peace dividends and social cohesion while promoting durable solutions tailored to the local needs and priorities of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and communities.
CONTEXT ANALYSIS
The Central African Republic (CAR) has been affected by a complex political and security crisis since 2013, leading to an acute humanitarian situation. Displacement and violence occurring in a fragile national context have had serious consequences on the protection of civilians, their living conditions and their physical and mental wellbeing (CAR ranks 188 out of 189 countries on the UNDP 2019 Human Development Index).
The 2022 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) identifies 3.1 million people in need (63 per cent of the population), among whom 2.2 million are in acute need (1.9 million in 2021), with half being children under the age of 18.
In late 2020, a coalition of rebel movements called the “Coalition of Patriots for Change” (CPC) formed to disrupt the 2020-2021 general election. The second round of the elections was held in March 2021 despite the CPC’s use of violence and armed action against the national government. Shortly after, the national army and allies regained control of most of the countries’ cities but armed groups remain dispersed in rural areas and military operations continue. As a result, 669,791 people are still displaced in CAR (Populations’ movements commission (CMP), November 2021) while 1,404,147 individuals returned to their areas of origin in the DTM coverage area, including 1,070,749 internally returnees and 333,398 returnees from abroad (DTM, September 2021), and areas classified as high and medium priority for protection now host 3.62 million people (HNO 2022).
The displacement of population in CAR and the worsening humanitarian situation in some parts of the country is also due to seasonal natural disasters (such as floods or fires) and agropastoral conflicts. In fact, 30,000 people were reported affected by natural disasters in 2021 (HNO 2022) and 5 per cent of the locations assessed by DTM mobility tracking (round 13) recorded displacements mainly due to natural disasters. Additionally, the disruptive action of armed groups and resource management challenges during major transhumance movements (cross-border and internal) in CAR has led to agropastoral conflicts and violence. From January to September 2021, approximately 20,300 people were affected by violence related to agropastoral conflicts particularly in the northern and western prefectures (HNO, 2022).
In this context marked by violence, the number of serious human rights violations and the cases of gender-based violence (GBV) increased throughout 2021 (GVBIMS, September 2021). In addition, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the country, in terms of impoverishment of families and degradation of access to essential services. People use negative coping strategies to deal with the deterioration of their living conditions and well-being and struggle to access health care, food, shelter and education, or to obtain drinking water (HNO 2022).
In addition, humanitarian access is becoming a major concern in CAR that further complicates the humanitarian response. The country is a dangerous place for humanitarians with recurring incidents affecting them and a serious threat of explosive devices in their area of intervention (HNO 2022).