UN SEEKS $1.5 MILLION TO TACKLE RISING MALNUTRITION AMONG CENTRAL AFRICAN CHILDREN

Malnutrition is on the rise among children in the Central African Republic (CAR), the United Nation Children's Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org/">UNICEF) warned today, appealing for $1.5 million to provide life-saving support.

CAR is one of the most impoverished nations in the world and remains beset by violence and widespread displacement in the north. An estimated 1 million people, out of a population of 4 million, are in need of humanitarian assistance.

"In both the conflict-affected north and the more stable south, almost 700,000 children under five are living below acceptable standards. Many are moving toward the outer edge of survival," said Jeremy Hopkins, acting representative of UNICEF in CAR.

Poverty, ongoing insecurity, and loss of income in areas where the diamond mining sector has been impacted by the global economic slowdown are among the causes cited for this situation.

Also a factor is the prevalence of HIV in the country, which at 6.3 per cent is the highest in its region and affects the nutritional situation of families.

In addition to providing essential food, drugs and supplies, funds from the $1.5 million appeal will also be used to conduct a national nutritional survey, as well as train community health workers in the early detection of children and women whose nutritional health may be at risk.

"These children's lives, their ability to learn, to earn, and to lead productive lives is being stunted by this tragic crisis," said Mr. Hopkins. "These children could be leading normal lives. We must try harder to fulfil their rights."

Yesterday a senior UN humanitarian official called for urgent action by the international community to assist those in need in CAR.

"It's not like any other humanitarian situation I've run across," Catherine Bragg, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, said as she briefed reporters on her visit to the country two weeks ago.

UNICEF WELCOMES RELEASE OF ALMOST 200 CHILD SOLDIERS BY CENTRAL AFRICAN REBEL FORCE

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has welcomed the release of nearly 200 child soldiers by a Central African rebel group and called for more demobilizations in the conflict-torn country.

The People's Army for the Restoration of Democracy (APRD) has released 166 boys and 16 girls aged between 10 and 17 since April, and nearly all those child soldiers have since been reunited with their families, UNICEF said in a statement issued yesterday.

The release of the child soldiers follows the rebels' signature of a peace agreement last year and a visit to the Central African Republic (CAR) by Radhika Coomaraswamy, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict.

"We are extremely pleased that APRD leaders are following through with their commitment to surrender the children in their ranks," said Mahimbo Mdoe, UNICEF's representative in Bangui, the CAR capital.

The UN agency has been working closely with the CAR Government and several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to plan and coordinate the release of the children, who mostly hail from Ouham Pendé province in the north of the country.

Two transit centres were built and each released child was given a "demobilization kit" that includes clothes, sleeping mats, blankets and personal hygiene items. The former soldiers also receive medical check-ups, basic literacy and mathematics classes and counselling.

When the children return to their former communities they can participate in catch-up classes to facilitate their reintegration into regular schools, while older children can attend training programmes in such areas as animal husbandry, tailoring and carpentry.

But Mr. Mdoe stressed that the former child soldiers are usually returning to communities with limited access to basic services and few employment opportunities. Sporadic fighting continues in northern CAR, particularly near the borders with Chad and Sudan.

"Reintegration is a long and often difficult process in any circumstance, and the prevailing climate of insecurity adds to the challenges," he said. "We need to keep up our assistance to these communities if we want the demobilization programme to succeed."

UNICEF is calling for an additional $1 million to ensure that the demobilization and reintegration of the child soldiers can continue.
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INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT BEGINS RADIO SERIES TO EXPLAIN ACTIVITIES TO CENTRAL AFRICANS

The International Criminal Court (ICC) today launches a series of radio programmes in the Central African Republic (CAR) as part of an outreach campaign aimed at informing the country's population about the court's mandate and activities.

The 13-episode series, which will be broadcast in the Sango language, is called "Understanding the International Criminal Court" and uses a question-and-answer format. At least 14 separate radio stations are expected to air the programmes.

The radio programmes are the result of some 50 outreach sessions held by the ICC in the Central African capital, Bangui, between January and June this year.

Individual episodes will be aired once a week, and the topics include the structure of the court, the rights of suspects, judgement and sentencing and the rights and responsibilities of witnesses and victims.

The situation in the CAR is one of four – along with Sudan's Darfur region, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda – currently under investigation by the Prosecutor of the ICC, an independent, permanent court that tries persons accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
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‘FRAGILE’ PEACE IN CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC NEEDS CONTINUED SUPPORT – BAN

The Central African Republic (CAR) faces a number of challenges in consolidating its "fragile" peace, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, calling for further support from its partners.

"The peace process in the Central African Republic is at a crossroads, requiring more than ever the continued support of the international community for national efforts to keep the process on track and avoid a relapse into conflict," Mr. Ban wrote in his latest report on the country and the activities of the UN Peacebuilding Support Office there BONUCA).

"The most pressing challenge, I believe, remains the need to reduce the high levels of extreme poverty under which the overwhelming majority of the people live in a country richly endowed with valuable natural resources," he stated.

In that regard, he welcomed the adoption last month by the UN Peacebuilding Commission of a plan to support the country's efforts which identifies three priority areas for the CAR and its partners to focus on, namely security sector reform, governance and the rule of law, and economic growth.

"For that strategic partnership to produce the expected results, it is vital that both the Government and the people of the Central African Republic, on the one hand, and the international community, on the other, recommit to play their respective roles to help rebuild a stable, prosperous and democratic country," said Mr. Ban.

It is also vital, he said, to respect the calendar for the legislative and presidential elections scheduled for 2010 and to set up an independent electoral commission. The UN would consider providing technical assistance for the polls, once the requisite conditions are in place, he added.

The Secretary-General also highlighted the implementation of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration as critical for sustainable peace and security, including efforts towards security sector reform and the organization of peaceful elections.

In addition, he voiced continuing concern about the "persistence of impunity," which he said contributes to the creation of a climate in which massive human rights violations, corruption and disrespect for the rule of law tend to fester and flourish, and which also contributes to discouraging foreign economic investment.

"It is essential, if peace is to endure, to ensure that those accused of violating the law, including international humanitarian law, are promptly brought to justice," he stated.

To help ensure optimal assistance from the UN system, the Secretary-General proposed the establishment of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in the CAR, to be known as BINUCA, and recommended the Security Council approve the structure and mandate proposed in the report for an initial period of one year.

In April, the Council demanded an end to violence by armed groups terrorizing northern CAR and called for all parties in the country to abide by the results of the national dialogue held in the capital Bangui from 8 to 20 December 2008.

The dialogue resulted in several agreements, including the establishment of a broad-based government, a commitment to hold municipal, legislative and presidential elections in 2009 and 2010, and the setting up of an independent electoral commission.
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ESCALATING VIOLENCE UPROOTS TENS OF THOUSANDS OF CENTRAL AFRICANS, UN SAYS

Intensified clashes in the Central African Republic have driven tens of thousands of civilians from their homes, the United Nations reported today, noting that the unrest could prolong the humanitarian crisis that has wracked the country for more than a decade.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that the violence could also jeopardize progress towards power-sharing between the Government and rebel groups.

The latest fighting in north-west of the CAR between Government troops and an emerging rebel forces, known as the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace (CPJP), have led some 6,400 people to escape into the bush, while over 9,000 others have fled across the border to Chad.

In the past ten years, over 300,000 people have been displaced by violence in the country.

In 2008, refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) began returning to their villages after peace agreements were signed with rebel groups, culminating with the holding of successful inclusive political dialogue, bringing all groups together in the capital, Bangui.

But renewed clashes this January across the country's north have forced nearly 24,000 to flee. While efforts are under way to help the IDPs, Government forces have limited access to those in need several times this month.

"Those who have fled their homes and lost their livelihoods are now in desperate need of protection and humanitarian aid," said Mai Moussa Abari, interim Humanitarian Coordinator for CAR.

He called on the Government to ensure consistent access for aid workers to all of those uprooted by the recent violence.

According to OCHA, below one-quarter of the $116 million needed for this year's Coordinated Aid Programme (CAP) has been funded, with critical shortfalls in key areas such as health and protection.
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CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: INCLUSIVE TALKS COULD LEAD TO PEACE CONSOLIDATION – UN

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: INCLUSIVE TALKS COULD LEAD TO PEACE CONSOLIDATION – UN
New York, Mar 10 2009 6:00PM

Recent long-awaited multi-party talks in the Central African Republic (CAR) have provided a window of opportunity to make strides towards consolidating peace in the land-locked nation, a top United Nations envoy told the Security Council today.

François Lonsény Fall, the Secretary-General's Special Representative, said that last December's successful talks held in the capital, Bangui, were a result of two years of "tremendous effort" by various actors, both national – including representatives of the Government, opposition and civil society – and international.

Three committees have been established in the areas of politics and governance; security and armed groups; and socio-economic questions, he said in his last briefing to the Council in his current position.

The first committee has "had to deal with the most contentious issues," such as the legitimacy of the current regime and the country's governance, Mr. Fall said.

At the end of the 12-day dialogue, he told the Council, several agreements had been reached, including the establishment of a broad-based government, a commitment to hold elections in 2009 and 2010, and the setting up of an independent electoral commission.

The security committee, for its part, has dealt with the issues of implementing security sector reform, restructuring the national armed forces and combating the proliferation of small arms, the envoy said, while the socio-economic committee is focusing on putting into place a poverty reduction strategy, reforming public finances and reforming the management of national resources.

Mr. Fall briefed the Council on the deterioration of the security situation in northern CAR, where rebel groups and a spill-over of violence from the Darfur war in neighbouring Sudan have driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes. He said there has been intense fighting and "some very daring attacks" against government institutions and military installations in some areas.

But in spite of the setbacks, he stressed that the December inclusive dialogue has provided an occasion to bring stability to the country, which has been beset by widespread fighting and armed banditry in recent years, with some 200,000 Central Africans have been either internally displaced by the fighting or forced to live as refugees in neighbouring Chad and Cameroon.

The Representative said that CAR leaders have "underlined the need to obtain support from the international community at the same time as they try to implement the foundations of the dialogue."

Last June, the Government struck an agreement with the rebel groups known as the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) and the Popular Army for the Restoration of Democracy (APRD) after talks in Libreville, Gabon, facilitated by that country's President El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba.

Also in June 2008, the CAR became the fourth country to be placed on the agenda of the Peacebuilding Commission, which aims to help States emerging from conflict to avoid the slide back into war or chaos.

A report issued by the Commission's mission that visited the country last autumn stressed that without concrete and substantive progress in inclusive political dialogue, efforts to achieve improvement in security, rule of law and development remained stalled in a country that is beset by unrest, widespread displacement and entrenched poverty.

"There is also a general awareness that progress has to be simultaneous on all three fronts," said the publication, released in January.
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