Zentralafrikanische Republik

Armed groups in the Central African Republic (CAR) must lay down their arms and engage in political dialogue, a UN-appointed independent human rights expert said on Friday, urging the international community to strengthen efforts to restore State authority and end impunity there.

[…] The decisions follow the holistic strategic review of the two missions and extend their mandates, until 9 August 2024 in the case of the civilian mission EUAM RCA, and until 20 September 2023 for the military one EUTM RCA. … The Council decided to maintain the strategic objectives of EUAM RCA, and to focus the mandate of EUTM RCA on the provision of strategic advice and accompanying education measures.

A sharp increase in prices of essential goods in the Central African Republic (CAR) linked to war in Ukraine, will likely have a devastating impact on the already dire humanitarian situation there in coming weeks, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.

A UN peacekeeping force said Wednesday it had expelled rebels from a town in the war-torn Central African Republic in order to “protect civilians.” Rebels from the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC) overran the northeastern town of Ouanda-Djalle on June 16, causing some 7,000 residents to flee into the forest, pro-government lawmakers from the region said.

Efforts are underway to reinvigorate the Central African Republic’s political process, which has lapsed into a state of “de facto lethargy” even as horrific attacks against civilians have risen, the senior UN official in the country told the Security Council on Wednesday.

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The new United Nations envoy to the Central African Republic Wednesday called for the “readjustment” of a UN peacekeeping force towards protecting civilians from abuse from all sides in the conflict.

The Cameroon-headquartered Bank of Central African States (BEAC) has urged the Central African Republic (CAR) to annul a law it passed in late April that made the cryptocurrency Bitcoin legal tender. The bank warned in a letter made public last week that the move breached its rules and could affect monetary stability in the region.

"Russian-identified forces" may have committed grave abuses against civilians in the Central African Republic, Human Rights Watch has said in a new report.

The Central African Republic (CAR) has approved Bitcoin as legal tender - just the second country to do so. … The country currently uses the French-backed CFA franc as its currency, along with most other former French colonies in Africa. Some see the adoption of Bitcoin as an attempt to undermine the CFA, amid a contest for influence over the resource-rich country between Russia and France.