Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what engagement they have had with the African Union on efforts to address the situation in the Central African Republic.

Baroness Northover

The ongoing violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) continues to take a distressing toll on the civilian population, compounding an already acute humanitarian crisis. The UN estimates that 557,000 people have been displaced within CAR, with 483,000 estimated to have fled the country, of whom 358,000 are refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Cameroon, Republic of Congo and South Sudan.

Prior to the crisis, CAR was host to over 15,000 refugees from DRC and Sudan; however the deteriorating security situation has led to the voluntary repatriation of many refugees with support from UNHCR. In April over 6,000 Congolese refugees were voluntarily repatriated to Equateur province in DRC – a further sign of the gravity of the situation in CAR.

The crisis is having a marked impact on education provision, with the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimating that 400,000 vulnerable children are in need of emergency access to education. Many schools outside the capital have been closed since the onset of the crisis and whilst some schools in Bangui have reopened, work on rebuilding educational institutions as well as infrastructure is needed. The Multi-Cluster Initial Rapid Assessment in January 2014 placed the level of functioning schools at 4%, with many looted and occupied by displaced people, but did not report military use of schools. The interruption of education affects both girls and boys.

The most important need continues to be security, and the UK has worked closely with international partners, including the African Union (AU), to support efforts to bring stability to the country. We have provided £2m in non-lethal support to the UN-mandated AU force, MISCA, which despite serious challenges, has worked well with the French Operation Sangaris to bring some security to the country. We will continue to work with the AU and others as we approach the handover to the UN Peace Keeping Operation, MINUSCA, in September 2014, and as preparations are made for elections, currently scheduled for 2015.