Central African Republic

In the Central African Republic, HI supports humanitarian organisations by providing logistical solutions to improve the storage and distribution of humanitarian aid. HI also supports physical rehabilitation centres in the country and implements inclusion and armed violence reduction projects.

An HI physiotherapist works with a young patient in Bambari | © A. Surprenant/Collectif Item/HI

Actions in process

HI first worked in the Central African Republic between 1994 and 2004, running development projects that included opening the Bangui orthopaedic centre and setting up the country’s only university training course for physical therapy assistants.

HI returned to CAR in 2016 and has since been implementing a range of projects to help address the country’s significant humanitarian needs.

In September 2018, for example, the programme introduced rehabilitation activities at Bambari General Hospital. This project provides physical rehabilitation care, technical devices and psychosocial support to people with specific needs.

Since 2020, HI has been implementing two types of civil engineering projects: airstrip rehabilitation and road and bridge rehabilitation. These projects are designed to improve the delivery of humanitarian aid, especially to hard-to-reach communities.

Since 2022, our teams have also been implementing stimulation therapy activities for children having experienced an episode of acute to severe malnutrition. The aim of stimulation therapy is to prevent and reduce developmental delays and disabilities due to malnutrition, and to train parents to stimulate their child.

Also in 2022, HI launched an explosive ordnance risk education project in CAR. This project is combined with a mental health and psychosocial support project and aimed at populations exposed to the risks of explosive devices or in situations of psychological distress.

Since 2023, HI RCA has been running an inclusive education project in three of the country's prefectures: Ouaka, Ouham and Ouham-Pende. This project aims to promote access to quality education for boys and girls with disabilities.

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Situation of the country

Map of Humanity & Inclusion's interventions in CAR

The Central African Republic suffers from structural underdevelopment and is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a human development index that places it second to last in the 2018 UNDP Human Development Index.

The country, marked by chronic instability since its independence in 1958, fell into an unprecedented humanitarian, political and security crisis during the third civil war, which began in 2013. Although the violence subsided temporarily, violent clashes resumed in December 2020 and continue to this day, causing a significant deterioration in the humanitarian situation.
The resulting insecurity and repeated population displacements have had serious socio-economic consequences and been compounded by the COVID-19 crisis, the impact of the war in Ukraine and sub-regional conflicts (Sudan and Chad). These factors external to the Central African conflict are having a direct impact on inflation, which reached 5.7% in 2022. Due to its landlocked location in the heart of Africa, the country is feeling the full impact of global geopolitical developments.

Number of HI staff: 62
Programme opened in: 1994

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