Central African Republic: Briefing and Consultations
Tomorrow afternoon (26 June), the Security Council will hold an open briefing and closed consultations on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR). Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix is expected to brief based on the Secretary-General’s latest report on the situation in the CAR and the activities of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), which was circulated to Council members on 13 June and covers developments since 13 February (S/2025/383). The CAR is expected to participate in the meeting under rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure.
The political landscape in the CAR continues to be dominated by discussions surrounding the upcoming local, legislative, and presidential elections scheduled for this year. Council members are likely to be interested in receiving an update from Lacroix on the ongoing preparations for local elections—set to take place for the first time in four decades—that have been repeatedly delayed. Lacroix may highlight MINUSCA’s support for the electoral process in line with its mandate, including the deployment of intensified patrols across various prefectures. He may add that the mission has contributed to creating secure conditions for voter registration and encouraging the participation of women, youth, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and returnees in the electoral process.
According to the Secretary-General’s report, on 24 April, the National Electoral Authority revised the budget for the local elections, increasing it from $19 million to $21.8 million—of which $12.4 million is administered by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and $9.4 million by the National Electoral Authority. The report notes a remaining funding gap of $9 million. Tomorrow, Council members may reiterate their calls for urgent financial support for the organisation of local elections, emphasising their importance to consolidating peace and advancing the extension of state authority across the country.
The voter registration process for the local elections, conducted by the National Electoral Authority in 11 of the country’s 20 prefectures in November and December 2024, and in the remaining nine prefectures in March, appears to have encountered challenges, including omissions of voter names and other technical anomalies. The Secretary-General’s report notes that the National Electoral Authority is working to address these issues. There are indications that the local elections, scheduled for August, may be postponed again due to the funding shortfalls and challenges related to voter registration. It seems that discussions are underway between the CAR authorities and the UN on the possibility of combining the local elections with the legislative and presidential elections in December.
Following the 2023 constitutional referendum in the CAR, which removed presidential term limits, CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra is widely expected to seek a third term, with strong backing from the presidential majority—comprised of the ruling party and other parties that support Touadéra—and affiliated youth groups. However, opposition parties have pushed back against this prospect, staging a protest in April. Lacroix may refer to the call for dialogue by the Bloc républicain pour la défense de la Constitution du 30 mars 2016 (BRDC), a coalition of opposition parties. While Touadéra agreed to a dialogue process led by his government that would exclude his direct participation, the BRDC has insisted on direct engagement with the president and proposed that an African mediator facilitate the talks, according to the Secretary-General’s report. This proposal was rejected by the government, however.
Another expected focus of tomorrow’s meeting is the implementation of the 2019 Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in the CAR (APPR-RCA, by its French acronym). A 6 February ceremony marking the sixth anniversary of the APPR-RCA saw the participation of signatory armed groups, religious platforms, guarantors and facilitators. According to the Secretary-General’s report, participants recognised the progress made but also the challenges that remain in fully implementing the agreement, highlighting the work that still needs to be done, for instance, on the disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration of former combatants and the organisation of local elections.
Touadéra has sought to re-engage armed opposition groups in dialogue, including by sending a delegation to N’Djamena for talks with opposition leaders based in Chad in April. This initiative appears to be part of efforts to revive the Luanda Roadmap, adopted in December 2021 by the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) in support of the APPR-RCA. The discussions in N’Djamena—facilitated by Chadian authorities—led to commitments from the leaders of the Retour, Réclamation et Réhabilitation (3R) and the Unité pour la Paix en Centrafrique (UPC) to cease hostilities and rejoin the APPR-RCA. At tomorrow’s meeting, Council members may welcome this development and call on all remaining armed groups to lay down their arms and engage in the political process through dialogue.
Lacroix may provide an overview of the security situation in the CAR, which remains volatile, particularly in the western and eastern regions. Competition over natural resources and control of key road corridors continues to fuel instability, and civilians are bearing the brunt of violence, with reports of killings, increased incidents of sexual violence, kidnappings, forced displacement, and extortion. The spillover effects of the conflict in neighbouring Sudan have further complicated the CAR’s security environment. On 24 June, Council members issued a press statement condemning the 20 June attack by suspected Sudanese armed elements against MINUSCA peacekeepers during a patrol in Vakaga prefecture located near the Sudanese border. The incident resulted in the death of a Zambian peacekeeper. Council members also expressed concern about the impact of the Sudanese crisis, particularly in border areas, including the incursions by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—one of the parties to the Sudan conflict—into the CAR’s territory and its coordination with local armed groups.
In April, Touadéra, in his capacity as the current Chair of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), addressed a letter to the Secretary-General expressing deep concern over the crisis in Sudan and its broader implications for regional peace and security. The letter was circulated to Security Council members ahead of the Council’s 19 May private meeting on the situation in Sudan. During the meeting, a CAR representative apparently echoed these concerns, underscoring the urgent need to find a lasting solution to the conflict. In May, Touadéra reportedly sent a delegation led by the Director of the Central African Intelligence Service, General Henri Wanzine, to Port Sudan to engage with the leadership of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), the other party to the Sudan conflict.
The human rights situation in the CAR remains a major concern for several Council members. During the reporting period, there was a 15 percent increase in human rights violations and abuses—including grave violations against children and incidents of conflict-related sexual violence—although the Secretary-General’s report notes a five percent decrease in the number of victims compared to the previous period. (The six grave violations, as determined by the Security Council, are child recruitment and use; killing and maiming; abductions; rape and other forms of sexual violence; attacks on schools and hospitals; and the denial of humanitarian access.) At the time of writing, Council members were awaiting the release of MINUSCA’s annual report on the human rights situation in the CAR, prepared by the mission’s Human Rights Division, which is expected in June.
Another issue that is likely to draw Council members’ attention is the lack of adequate resources available to MINUSCA to effectively carry out its mandated tasks. This reflects a broader challenge facing all UN peace operations, stemming from the organisation’s ongoing liquidity crisis due to delays in the payment of assessed contributions by member states. The US, a major financial contributor to the UN peacekeeping budget, has been increasingly critical of UN peacekeeping operations, including MINUSCA. In a 2 May letter to the US Senate Committee on Appropriations, the US government indicated its intention to withhold funding for UN peacekeeping missions, citing “recent failures and the high level of assessments”. According to the Secretary-General’s latest report, unpaid contributions to the Special Account for MINUSCA totalled $410.7 million as at 1 June. At tomorrow’s meeting, Lacroix may brief Council members on the contingency plans currently being developed by the UN Secretariat to manage the financial shortfall.
In a notable development, the Security Council unanimously renewed MINUSCA’s mandate in November 2024 through resolution 2759—the first unanimous renewal of the mission in four years—reflecting strong and unified support for its efforts. However, recent signals from the US have raised concerns about potential implications for the mission. With MINUSCA’s mandate set for renewal in November, Washington’s decisions regarding its financial contributions to the UN peacekeeping budget will be closely watched in the coming weeks and months.
