Kouassi Lazare Etien, UNHCR Representative in the Central African Republic, CAR, speaks on the serious humanitarian situation the country faces, with rains just around the corner.

What is the humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic now?

When the UNHCR High Commissioner, António Guterres, visited the Central African Republic in mid-February, he spoke about “a humanitarian catastrophe of unspeakable proportions.” The humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is extremely dire. Over one fifth of the population has been uprooted, with 657,000 Internally-displaced Persons (IDPs) and more than 290,000 refugees in neighbouring countries.

About 20,000 displaced people are at high risk of being attacked by armed groups and need increased immediate physical security. More than half (2.5 million) of the total population is in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.

Insecurity is making the delivery of humanitarian relief even more difficult. Several reports indicate that people are dying of hunger in some areas such as Boda. There are very high rates of malnutrition among displaced people who find themselves stranded and trapped, with no possibility of getting food.

The commercial axis between Cameroon and CAR remains the main route for food deliveries and with the approaching rainy season, the country will not be accessible by road. State and basic services have totally collapsed throughout the country. The public sector is no longer functional, with salaries not paid in the past six months.

This has had a terrible impact on the health sector. Many people suffer because of lack of timely access to medical care. According to UNICEF, about 2.5 million children have been affected by the fighting. Many have been forced to join armed groups and are exposed to sexual violence. Many others have been displaced from their homes and separated from their families.

Humanitarian agencies and NGOs are making big efforts to help victims of the humanitarian crisis. However, we are all facing dramatic underfunding. Our resources are overwhelmed and ability to do more hampered. Everyday, people continue to flee the country while others are dying. We must all do everything to end the disaster.

With the rainy season already around the corner, what are the UNHCR and other aid agencies doing to mitigate the impact on refugees and Internally-displaced People?

The rainy season in CAR that lasts from May to November will particularly affect displaced communities living in flood-prone areas of the capital, Bangui. The rains will also affect the population at large, making roads impassable due to landslides and flooding. Rain will also cut off some remote areas from basic services such as water, food, shelter and vital healthcare.

Currently, there are 232,000 displaced persons in Bangui who are camped in 57 sites. The charity, REACH, is facilitating a thorough mapping exercise of Bangui’s sub-divisions and displacement sites in anticipation of the rainy season. 

REACH has deployed a team of assessment and GIS specialists to monitor the displacement patterns as well as the vulnerability to flooding of the current displacement sites. The most inadequate displaced site is at the Bangui M’Poko International Airport. It is a swampy area characterised by very poor soil conditions.

This site should be closed for several reasons, including poor drainage conditions, high risks of epidemics and for being a hub for some gangs. In coordination with local authorities, humanitarian stakeholders have already drafted action and contingency plans for the rainy season.

They focus on three priorities - creating conducive conditions for the return of IDPs, mitigating the impact of the rainy season by undertaking remedial activities to improve the drainage and shelter conditions in small and medium-size displacement sites, and identifying alternative temporary sites for the most vulnerable displaced persons who will not be able to return soon to their neighbourhoods.

With the challenges being faced on the ground, do you think a major humanitarian disaster can still be averted?

The current situation in CAR has already reached the level of a major humanitarian disaster and that is exactly what the international community seems to ignore. If we do not massively respond to this situation now, then, it will be too late. Humanitarian response is not a solution, but just a temporary relief. The challenges in CAR go beyond a humanitarian response. They need a robust political engagement and response.

People have reached extreme levels of despair due to high levels of poverty and human rights violations. The social fabric is torn, but there is still time to bring people together through massive mediation efforts in order to pave the way for future reconciliation.