Central African Republic

The landlocked Central African Republic is one of the poorest nations in the world, located in an extremely volatile region and beset by constant political instability and upheaval, including a coup in 2013 when the government was overthrown amidst violence and looting. Given this instability, it has been extremely difficult to achieve economic growth or public health advances.

The country’s post-coup context offers little but humanitarian disasters in the making, with most of the country’s health centers closed, the majority of children unable to attend school, and over 200,000 families forced to flee their homes. The U.N. estimates that $130 million dollars would be needed to meet the country’s humanitarian needs, of which only 43% has been pledged in support of the aid agencies working in the Central African Republic.

Fighting Hunger in Central African Republic

Despite the desperate and volatile situation, Action Against Hunger’s teams have managed to continue carrying out our programs, strengthening our lifesaving nutrition activities to help those most at risk (children under five years of age), expanding access to clean water and sanitation facilities, and fostering livelihood and income opportunities for the long term.

In 2012 alone we helped over 80,000 citizens in the Central African Republic, a number that is likely to increase as we respond to the current political emergency. However, we remain hopeful for improved political and humanitarian outcomes. Alain Coutand, our Regional Operations Manager, believes that, "While the situation is dramatic, improvement in Central African Republic is totally feasible and possible.” Help us reach the hundreds of thousands in desperate need of lifesaving treatment.