News bulletin 77 (15 – 22 Sep 2008)
Sep 22nd, 2008 by Gisele Willybiro, OCHA
Highlights
- The monitoring committee of the comprehensive peace accord met in Libreville on 15 September
- Ban Ki-moon asks for 6,000 troops for CAR and Chad
- 240 ‘malaria mums’ trained in the north-east
- Chadian contingent of MICOPAX trained in Human Rights
Background and security
Monitoring committee meets in Libreville
The committee charged with the monitoring of the comprehensive peace accord, signed on 21 June in Libreville, met in the same city on 15 September in order to review the implementation of the agreement.
Cyriaque Gonda, Minister of Communication, Civism, Dialogue and National Reconciliation, and Raymond N’Dougou, Interior Minister, represented the Central African Government at the meeting. Jean-Jacques Démafouth and Henri Tchebo Wafio of the Popular Army for the Restoration of Democracy (APRD) and Djarnib Grebaye of the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) were present for the rebel movements. The discussions were facilitated by high representatives of the Government of Gabon, the United Nations in CAR, the European Union, the Mission for the Consolidation of Peace in Central Africa (MICOPAX), the Community of Sahelo-Saharan States (CEN-SAD) and the International Organization of the Francophonie (OIF).
At the end of the talks, in the final communiqué, the monitoring committee called for the respect of the ceasefire and exhorted all parties to refrain from media statements that might undermine the spirit of the comprehensive peace accord. The participants requested a close collaboration with MICOPAX for the monitoring of the ceasefire.
The monitoring committee also recommended the implementation of all provisions of the agreement, particularly the ones pertaining to general amnesty, and praised the return of the APRD to the peace process. Finally, the monitoring committee appealed to the international community to step up its efforts in support of the peace process, which should result in the inclusive political dialogue.
Ban Ki-moon asks for 6,000 troops for CAR and Chad
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 17 September proposed that the Security Council consider sending 6,000 United Nations troops to replace a European Union force in eastern Chad and north-eastern CAR (EUFOR). The Secretary-General also said that the Council should leave any resolution authorizing this new force in draft form until the world body has firm guarantees on troop contributions and other support from Member States. He noted that while insecurity and instability in the two nations are spurred by many factors, positive steps have been taken towards bolstering peace and stability.
Current events
240 ‘malaria mums’ in the north-east
Since December 2007, International Medical Corps (IMC), an American NGO, has been supporting the health centre of Ouadda, a sub-province of Haute-Kotto in the north-east with 8,000 inhabitants. The rehabilitation of the centre, which also runs a nutrition programme, has just been completed. Before, IMC had already renovated the health structures of Sam Ouandja, Ouanda Djalle, and Ouandja, three towns in Haute-Kotto and the neighboring Vakaga province.
IMC set up a homecare program for people ill with malaria in the same towns. The NGO trained 240 women, called ‘malaria mums’, on the use of Paracheck, a rapid blood test to diagnose malaria, and on the administration of Coartem, the first line drug for the treatment of the disease.
For more information: gyogo@imcworldwide.org
Human Rights training for MICOPAX
Over 30 officers and troops of the Chadian contingent have been trained in the guiding principles on the rights of internally displaced people, child protection in emergencies, and Human Rights. The six sessions of the training were organized at Camp M’poko in Bangui between 11 and 19 September.
The workshop was conducted jointly by the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), the United Nations Office in CAR (BONUCA) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The training sessions are an integral part of the troops’ preparation for field operations.
MICOPAX has already given permission for BONUCA, UNHCR, and UNICEF to continue this awareness-raising with the contingents from Congo, Cameroon, and Gabon at the end of September and in October.
For more information: legast@unhcr.org
16,500 young people educated on AIDS
Founded in 1987, the Central African Association for the Well-being of Families (ACABEF) works mainly on improving family life through the promotion of sexual and reproductive health. The association also runs HIV/AIDS prevention programs and has two regional offices, in Bambari in the centre of the country and in Bossangoa in the north-west.
In March 2008, the association started a project on information and prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS, funded by the World Health Organization (WHO). The project targeted youth in Sibut and in towns hit by the conflict, in particular Kaga Bandoro, Bossangoa, Bozoum, and Paoua. The HIV prevalence in these cities varies between 2.6% and 7%. During project implementation, more than 16,500 young people aged 10 to 25 have been reached with awareness-raising activities provided by 100 peer educators, at a ratio of 20 peer educators per town. A total of 12,000 male and female condoms were distributed.
ACABEF will now intensify social mobilization activities for youth through peer educators. In addition, upon request of the population of Kaga Bandoro and Sibut, the association intends to mobilize additional resources for the opening of two centres where emergency obstetric care will be provided.
For more information: acabef@yahoo.fr
Coordination
Internal displacement campaign in CAR
CAR has been selected as pilot country for an internal displacement advocacy campaign. An estimated 108,000 people are internally displaced in the country and about 85,000 people are thought to have returned to their villages, often destroyed by violence, in 2007 and 2008.
The campaign aims at ensuring strengthened national and international humanitarian and political action to prevent further displacement in CAR and to increase protection and humanitarian assistance to the displaced and recent returnees. A campaign planning workshop, supported by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), will be held in Bangui on 8 October.
Information
Contact us: UN OCHA Bangui, CAR
Nancy Snauwaert | snauwaert@un.org | +236 75 54 22 78
Gisèle Willybiro | willybiro@un.org | +236 75 54 90 31
