Central African Republic: Situation Report, 1 Feb 2023

 

ReliefWeb Situation Report 
 

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HIGHLIGHTS

  • Humanitarian actors provided life-saving assistance to 1.5 million people between January and September 2022, representing 75 per cent of the target for 2022.

  • 3.4 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2023.

  • After several years of displacement, humanitarian and development actors are helping internally displaced persons and refugees to resume a normal life.

  • With 50 per cent of the population not eating enough, CAR has one of the highest proportions of critically food-insecure people in the world.

Central African Republic: Soaring humanitarian needs in 2023

The humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR) continues to deteriorate. As a result of violence against civilians and insecurity in areas outside urban centres, several million people are increasingly vulnerable and their livelihoods are eroding. Their access to food and basic services such as health care and water supply is drastically limited.

In 2023, 3.4 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection, an increase of 10 per cent compared to 2022. This includes 2 million people who will have such complex and severe needs that their physical and mental well-being is at risk.

These are the findings of a joint multi-sectoral analysis conducted by the humanitarian community among vulnerable people, published in the Humanitarian Needs Overview 2023 for CAR. People affected by the crisis were at the heart of the analysis, with 23,300 households interviewed in all 72 sub-prefectures of the country. The results shed light on how the current crisis is affecting the living conditions of the population, available services and access to these services, and inform about people's priority needs.

Increasing needs

The sectors with the largest number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in 2023 are water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), food security, health and protection, covering between 2.7 and 3 million people. Food security and WASH are the sectors with the greatest increase of needs, with 600,000 (+25 per cent) and 200,000 (+7 per cent) more people in need of assistance compared to 2022.

While clashes between parties to the conflict have decreased in intensity to some extent, violence against civilians has not kept pace and their livelihoods continue to deteriorate, including through forced displacement. In addition, the stress within households due to food insecurity, as well as the adoption of negative coping mechanisms have led to an increase in gender-based violence (GBV), affecting thousands of women and girls. Of the 10 sub-prefectures that recorded an increase in GBV cases, five sub-prefectures are classified in phase 4 of 5 on an international food insecurity classification scale, just one step away from a catastrophic situation.

A solid foundation for the 2023 humanitarian response

To meet people's needs in 2023, humanitarian actors in collaboration with the Central African Government are developing a common strategy to guide their response, based on the 2023 Humanitarian Needs Overview. This strategy will be detailed in the 2023 Humanitarian Response Plan for CAR, which will be published in December 2022.

Thanks to generous donor contributions, humanitarian partners in CAR have provided life-saving multi-sectoral assistance to 1.5 million people during the first nine months of 2022, despite a volatile security context. Although the level of funding for the Humanitarian Response Plan 2022 remains among the highest in the region, sectors such as WASH, education and protection, in particular GBV, remain underfunded. Humanitarian partners are counting on the continued commitment of donors to stand by Central Africans and enable humanitarian organizations to respond to the ever-growing needs of the population in 2023.

Download the 2023 Humanitarian Needs Overview for CAR (in French) here.

Disclaimer

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.

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