Central African Republic
Advocacy
In his 2025 annual report (S/2025/247) on children and armed conflict (CAAC), the Secretary-General (SG) newly listed Azande Ani Kpi Gbe for recruitment and use of children in addition to the local militias known as anti-balaka, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), the Front populaire pour la renaissance de la Centrafrique (FPRC), Mouvement patriotique pour la Centrafrique (MPC), and Union pour la paix en Centrafrique (UPC) which are each listed in the annex of the SG’s report for multiple grave violations against children. According to the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) latest report, the UN verified 196 grave violations against children between 1 October 2025 and 1 February 2026, marking an increase compared to the previous reporting period. Violations included recruitment and use (48 percent), abduction (22 percent), rape and other forms of sexual violence (16 percent), denial of humanitarian access (six percent), attacks on schools and hospitals (four percent), killing (two percent), and maiming (two percent). In June, the SG will report on the situation in CAR and MINUSCA per SCR 2800 (2025). The Security Council should:
- Demand that all parties uphold their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law (IHL) and human rights law (IHRL), and that all parties allow and facilitate the safe, timely, and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance to affected populations, especially children;
- Encourage the ongoing efforts made by parties to release children from their ranks; call for all parties to end and prevent grave violations against children, including by engaging with the UN to sign and implement action plans to end and prevent all six grave violations against children; urge the MPC, FPRC, and UPC to fully and swiftly implement their respective action plans and release all children still in their ranks;
- Welcome the signing of the October 2024 handover protocol, and call on the Government to swiftly and fully implement its provisions;
- Call on the Government to fully implement all aspects of the Child Protection Code and the national plan on the prevention of grave violations against children and to ensure perpetrators of grave violations are held accountable and that child survivors of sexual violence have access to comprehensive, gender-sensitive, and age-appropriate response systems and services, and strengthen preventive measures.
FRANCE IS THE SECURITY COUNCIL PENHOLDER ON CAR.
This information is based on Watchlist’s Children and Armed Conflict Monthly Update – June 2026.
Publications
UN Action
Year listed: 2007
Action Plans signed: UFDR – recruitment and use of children (June 2007); Mouvement Patriotique pour la Centrafrique – recruitment and use, killing and maiming, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and attacks on schools and hospitals (June 2018); Front Populaire pour la Renaissance de la Centrafrique – recruitment and use of children, killing and maiming, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and attacks on schools and hospitals (July 2019); l’Unité pour la paix en Centrafrique – recruitment and use of children, killing and maiming, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and attacks on schools and hospitals (August 2019)
Previous Action Plans: APRD – recruitment and use of children (October 2011) *Party ceased to exist; CPJP – recruitment and use of children (November 2011) *Party ceased to exist
Sanctions Committee: The Central African Republic Sanctions Committee (Current Chair: Niger)
Secretary-General’s reports on CAAC in CAR: 2021; 2019; 2016; 2011; 2009
Security Council Working Group conclusions on CAR: 2020; 2016; 2011; 2009
UN Mission: MINUSCA
Perpetrators listed in the annexes of the Secretary-General’s annual reports on children and armed conflict
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armee populaire pour la restauration de la Republique et de la democratie (APRD)~ | a, c | a | a | a | a | ||||||||||
| Forces democratiques pour la reassemlement (UFDR)/Union des forces democratiques pour le rassemblement (UFDR)~ | a, b, d | a,c | a | a | a | a | a,b,c,d | ||||||||
| Forces democratiques populaire de Centrafrique (FDPC)* | a, c | a | a | a | a | a | a,b,c,d | ||||||||
| Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA)* | a,c,e | a,c | a,b,c | a,b,c | a,b,c | a,b,c | a,b,c | a,b,c,e | a,b,c,e | ||||||
| Movement des liberateurs centrafricains pour la justice (MLCJ) | a | a | a | a | a | ||||||||||
| Self-defence militias supported by the Government of Central African Republic | a | a | a | a | |||||||||||
| Convention des patriotes pour la justice et la paix (CPJP)~ | a | a | a | a | a,b,c,d | ||||||||||
| Convention des patriotes pour la justice et la paix fondamentale (CPJP fondamentale) | a | a,b,c,d | |||||||||||||
| Convention patriotique pour le salut du Kodro (CPSK) | a | ||||||||||||||
| Union des forces republicaines (UFR) | a | ||||||||||||||
| Local defense militias known as the anti-balaka | a,b | a,b,c | a,b,c | a,b,c | |||||||||||
| Former Séléka coalition and associated armed groups | a,b,c,d | a,b,c,d | a,b,c,d | a,b,c,d |
a: Parties that recruit and use children
b: Parties that kill and maim children
c: Parties that commit rape and other forms of sexual violence against children
d: Parties that engage in attacks on schools and/or hospitals
e: Parties that engage in abduction of children
f: Parties that deny humanitarian access to children
~ This party has concluded an action plan with the United Nations in line with Security Council resolutions 1539 (2004) and 1612 (2005).
* This party has been in the annexes for at least five years and is therefore considered a persistent perpetrator.
