Central African Republic (CAR) President Faustin Archange Touadera in the First Round of the 27 December Elections

Central African

Republic

Humanitarian Situation Report No. 1

Reporting Period: January-February 2021 © SI Situation in Numbers

On 18 January, the Constitutional Court confirmed the re-election of Central African 1,300,000 Republic (CAR) President Faustin Archange Touadera. The security situation children in need of remains tense as the national army and allied bilateral forces continue to regain humanitarian assistance control of areas occupied by the Coalition des Patriotes pour le Changement (CPC) since mid-December. - As of February 2021, 742,000 people were estimated to be internally displaced. 2,800,000 This represents the largest number of internally displaced persons (IDP) registered people in need since 2014 and a 19 per cent increase since October 2020; (OCHA Feb 2021) - 23,154 conflict affected children benefited from play and recreational activities through UNICEF supported Child Friendly Spaces (CFS), and 180 new cases of 742,000 gender-based violence (GBV) against children were registered and supported. Internally displaced people - Since the first case of COVID-19 in CAR in mid-March, 5,015 positive cases including 63 deaths (as of 1 March) have been confirmed. (IDPs)

- 2,846 children under 5 suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM) have been treated. 647,798 # of pending and registered

refugees

(UNHCR, 28 Feb 2021) UNICEF’s Response and Funding Status

Measles vaccination 0% UNICEF Appeal 2021

Health Funding status 54% US$ 75.7 million

SAM admissions 6% - Funding status 32% Nutrition

MHPSS access 29%

Child Funding status 15% Protection Education access 0%

Funding status 18% Education

Safe water access 5%

WASH Funding status 5% HH with humanitarian cash 0% transfers

Cash Funding status 13% Transfer

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

*Funding available includes funds received in the current year; carry-over from the previous year; and repurposed funds with agreement from donors. 1

Funding Overview and Partnerships UNICEF appeals for $ 75.7 million to sustain provision of life-saving services for women and children in CAR. In 2021, on top of multi-year funding received from Switzerland and the United States of America (USAID/BHA), Denmark, the Global Humanitarian Thematic Funds and Japan have generously contributed to UNICEF CAR humanitarian response. UNICEF expresses its sincere gratitude to all donors for the contributions received. However, the 2021 HAC still has a funding gap of 73 per cent. To meet the immediate response needs, UNICEF has reallocated $ 390,170 from other regular resources and received an internal loan of $ 900,000 from the UNICEF Emergency Programme.

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs Highlights On 18 January, the Constitutional Court confirmed the re-election of Central African Republic (CAR) President Faustin Archange Touadera in the first round of the 27 December elections. Meanwhile, the new coalition of armed groups "Coalition des Patriotes pour le Changement (CPC) -formed in December, calling for the postponement of elections- launched coordinated attacks on the outskirts of the capital Bangui, which were repelled. The coalition, however, managed to attack and or occupy a significant number of towns in several regions of CAR.

February was marked by a decrease in armed violence as the national army and allied bilateral forces gradually regained control of areas occupied by the CPC in December and January. However, despite the decrease in the number of clashes, the security situation in CAR remains tense: the state of emergency declared on January 21 was extended for six months, and the nationwide curfew is now from 8 pm to 5 am.

OCHA estimates that the current crisis has caused the displacement of 336,000 people and according to UNHCR an additional 115,000 Central Africans are currently in DRC, Cameroon, Chad and the Republic of Congo due to the crisis. Although more than half of the displaced are thought to have already returned home, more than 140,000 remain internally displaced according to OCHA.

Meanwhile, while the movement of trucks between Cameroon and CAR is slowly resuming in escorted convoys, the ongoing insecurity is still causing major disruptions on the main supply route (MSR1), delaying the timely delivery of essential aid to affected populations and sustaining increases in the prices of food staple.

This crisis is further aggravating the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic that in the first two months of the year has regained strength: since the first case of COVID-19 in CAR in mid-March, 5,015 positive cases including 63 deaths (as of 1 March) have been confirmed.

Humanitarian access remains a major concern, with 115 incidents against aid workers (including one death) recorded by OCHA in January and February against 46 in 2020.

Summary Analysis of Programme Response Health and VIH From January 2021 to February 28, 2021, 11,403 people, including 5,012 children under 5 years (2,456 girls and 2,556 boys), 1,876 children between 5 and 15 years (957 girls and 9,19 boys), 2,845 pregnant women, and 1,670 vulnerable people (8,52 women and 8,18 men) at IDP sites and host families in the localities of Bangassou, Bouar, Bossangoa and Sibut. The most common illnesses among children under 5 years were malaria (1,804 cases), acute respiratory infections (1,504 cases), and diarrheal diseases (1,122 cases). The 582 other diseases included skin diseases and intestinal parasitosis. Among the 2,845 pregnant women, 80% (2,276) had their first prenatal consultation compared to 11% (313) for the 4 ANC; 85% of the 2,276 pregnant women were tested for HIV (1,935) and 3% were tested HIV+ (58) and put on ARVs.

CAR reported a total of 689 cases of measles during the period from January 2021 to February 28, 2021. Four health districts are in a measles epidemic because they have reported at least 3 positive measles cases over a period of 4 weeks from week 1 to 11. These districts are Berberati, Sangha-Mbaéré; Batangafo and Mbaïki. 14 districts out of 35 (40%) have investigated and collected at least one suspected case of measles. For the districts that are in epidemic, medical care for cases is provided and preparations are underway to conduct a vaccine response.

Nutrition During the reporting period, a total of 2,846 children under 5 suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), received treatment. The quality of SAM treatment programmes is in line with the SPHERE minimum standards, with a cure rate of 90 percent, a mortality rate of 1 percent, a defaulter rate of 3.8 percent and a non-response rate of 0.5 percent.

In addition, 2,771 children aged 6-59 months were supplemented with vitamin A. Moreover, 6,938 pregnant and lactating women were reached with key education and promotion messages on infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices by UNICEF and nutrition cluster partners since the beginning of the year.

The nutrition surveillance and early warning system is functional in 34 out of 35 health districts. Figures showed that 14 districts out of 34 are on alert. Rapid SMART surveys and nutritional assessments have been carried out to confirm the nutritional situation in these alert districts in order to ensure an adequate response.

WASH During the reporting period, UNICEF and partners ensured water access to 10,000 IDPs in Bossangoa (Ouham) and 4,000 IDPs in Bouar (Nana-Mambéré) providing water supplies and chemicals. Six boreholes have been rehabilitated in Birao (vakaga), allowing 3,000 people including 451 men, 524 women, 969 boys and 1056 girls to gain access to safe drinking water.

In partnership with the Agence Nationale de l’Eau de et l’Assainissement (ANEA) and MSF, 5,000 IDPs in Bossangoa and 6,000 IDPs in Bouar have gained access to basic sanitation facilities thanks to the construction of 160 latrines, 48 showers and 3 garbage pits in IDPs sites. In the 5 IDPs sites in Bossangoa, 34 scouts and 13 community members were trained on the management of handwashing stations and maintenance of showers and emergency latrines. In Bouar, a total of 6,000 IDPs were sensitized on proper hygiene practices and COVID-19 prevention.

UNICEF has supported the management of 30 public handwashing stations in Bocaranga, Koui and Ngaoundaye sub prefecture and new 115 public handwashing station in Sibut have been installed reaching over 23,000 people. Over 16,256 were sensitized to COVID-19 barrier measures

In January and February, the WASH cluster maintained operational meetings with partners to support effective coordination and response to the needs of affected people. Humanitarian actors have had to slow down their humanitarian response during these two months of the year due to renewed looting of their bases and attacks on their personnel. Despites these difficulties, 64,551 people have been assisted: 44,951 people benefited from safe water and another 19,600 from sanitation facilities.

Education During the reporting period, the increase in violence has resulted in schools being forcibly shuttered, occupied or damaged in 11 out of 16 of the country’s prefectures.

In a joint statement released on 23 February, CAR Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown and UNICEF Representative Fran Equiza alerted that half of the country’s children are currently out of school because of the conflict, 999 schools are non-operational as a result of fighting and 26 are still occupied by armed groups.

In the interim, UNICEF ensured children forced to stay home have access to alternative learning solutions, such as education by radio, and that temporary learning spaces are available for those who had to flee their homes. In Ouaka prefecture, 1,851 children, including 737 girls, had access to education through radio.

At cluster level, education partners have mainly implemented activities aimed at raising awareness on the importance of resuming school activities: 4,485 children have been sensitized, 50 men and 4 women in Nana Gribizi prefecture.

Child Protection Following the escalation of armed conflict in the run-up to and after the December general elections, UNICEF and partners ensured that newly displaced children and children in long-term displacement situations had access to integrated psychosocial support. During the reporting period, 27,700 individuals, including 23,154 children and 2,546 caregivers were reached with UNICEF supported psychosocial programmes through Child Friendly Spaces and outreach activities at community level in Bouar (Nana Mambéré), Bambari (Ouaka), Bangassou (Mbomou) and Kaga Bandoro (Nana Gribizi).

122 children formerly associated with armed groups (including 28 girls) were identified in Kaga-Bandoro and Bouar prefectures. Children received socio-economic reintegration assistance which includes support in returning into formal schools, skills training and livelihoods support. 180 new cases of gender-based violence (GBV) against children were registered and supported. The support provided included mainly social follow-up, individual counselling, psychosocial support and referral for medical care.

71 children (including 22 girls) separated from their families because of the new conflict were successfully reunified with their families or provided with temporary care arrangements through placement in foster families whilst efforts to trace their families continue.

Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) In January and February, a total of 21 alerts were published and shared with the humanitarian community. 80 per cent were related to violence and conflict in link with the operations conducted the national army and allied bilateral forces against CPC, mostly in Ombella Mpoko, Ouham and Ouka prefectures. Seven exploratory missions and six multisector assessments (MSAs) were conducted in these regions.

RRM partners assisted 9,292 individuals (including 1,557 children under 5) with essential household items and 9,054 (including 764 children under 5) have benefited from WASH assistance.

The latest RRM dashboard can be accessed here.

Communications for Development (C4D), Community Engagement & Accountability To support the planning of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, UNICEF developed a communication plan to prevent vaccine hesitation. This plan includes: a crisis communication plan, identification of communication indicators, and a monitoring and evaluation mechanism. Communication tools and supports have also been developed. A validation workshop is being prepared for the different productions.

Humanitarian Leadership, Coordination and Strategy UNICEF is a member of the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), UN Country Team (UNCT), Security Management Team (SMT). UNICEF also participates in the MINUSCA coordination mechanisms such as the Senior Management Group for Protection (SMGP) and the Protection from sexual exploitation and abuse Task Force (PSEA TF) to strengthen the delivery of humanitarian assistance. UNICEF leads WASH, Nutrition, Education Clusters and Child Protection Sub- Cluster. The Government is an active member of the WASH, Nutrition, and Education Clusters and Child Protection Sub-Cluster. The national Child Protection Sub-Cluster covers all prefectures directly or indirectly. Nutrition is paired with health and works through three Sub-Clusters at the regional level. The Education and WASH Clusters are also functional at the regional level. At the Cluster level, UNICEF is an active member of the Health Cluster and, via the RRM coordinator, of the Shelter/NFI/Camp Management Cluster. Moreover, UNICEF hosts and coordinates the Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM). The RRM Coordinator is a member of the Inter-Cluster Coordination team (ICC) which enables efficient coordination between the RRM program and the humanitarian community.

Working with partners based in the country’s most troubled areas, and using prepositioned essential supplies, UNICEF prioritizes child centered life-saving interventions and risk reduction for crisis-affected, displaced and returning people in CAR. The Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) led by UNICEF carries out multi-sector assessments on new crises, provides non-food items and water, sanitation and hygiene support to vulnerable people newly affected by shocks, and coordinates internally as well as with external actors to ensure complementary responses in other essential sectors. The mechanism also provides UNICEF and partners with quick and reliable information on the affected populations needs. This allows UNICEF to mobilize partners to address preventable childhood illnesses, malaria, HIV and malnutrition. UNICEF focuses on the protection needs of children, including their release from armed groups and reunification with their families when separated or unaccompanied, and provides the appropriate psychosocial support to children affected by the conflict. UNICEF contributes to providing out of school children with access to safe learning spaces and quality education. UNICEF works with line ministries to reinforce the Government’s capacity in humanitarian coordination, leadership and response. In coordination with UNICEF development programs, the emergency response contributes day to day to increase people’s access to basic services in line with the commitment to strengthen the humanitarian-development continuum.

UNICEF CAR: www.unicef.org/infobycountry/CAR.html UNICEF CAR Facebook: www.facebook.com/UNICEFCAR UNICEF CAR Twitter: https://twitter.com/UNICEFCAR UNICEF CAR Humanitarian Action for Children Appeal: http://www.unicef.org/appeals/car.htm

Who to contact for Fran Equiza Paolo Marchi Frederic Emirian further information: Representative Deputy Representative Chief Emergency & Field Operations Central African Republic Central African Republic Central African Republic Tel: +236 7055 0205 Tel: +236 7055 0206 Tel: +236 7000 9667 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]

Annex A

Summary of Programme Results

UNICEF and IPs Response Cluster/Sector Response

Sector 2021 Total Change* Total Change* 2021 target target results ▲▼ results ▲▼ Indicator | Disaggregation Health #children under five vaccinated Girls 638,981 0 - against polio Boys 0 - Girls 3,413 - #children and women Boys 107,028 3,475 - accessing primary healthcare in Women 3,697 - UNICEF supported facilities Men 818 - #health care facility staff and Women 0 - community health workers 1,980 trained on infection prevention Men 0 - and control #children under 10 vaccinated Girls 399,853 0 - against measles Boys 0 - #pregnant and lactating women Girls 148 ND - living with HIV receiving Women 58 - antiretroviral therapy #adolescent girls and boys Girls ND - tested for HIV who received the 10,725 Boys ND - result of last test Nutrition #children aged 6-59 months Girls 1,523 - 1,523 1,523 49,862 49,862 with SAM admitted for Boys 1,323 - 1323 1,323 treatment Women 6,938 - 6,938 6,938 #primary caregivers of children 164,828 219,771 0-23 months receiving IYCF Men 569 - 569 569 counseling #children 6-59 months Girls 1,483 - 1,483 1,483 receiving vitamin A 647,226 647,226 supplementation every six Boys 1,288 - 1,288 1,288 months Child Protection Girls 11,198 - 20171 21638 # children [and caregivers] 145,000 Boys 120,000 11,956 - 21851 23531 accessing mental health and Women 1,291 - psychosocial support Men 1,255 - # women, girls and boys Girls 137 - 323 323 accessing GBV risk mitigation, Boys 6,000 3 - 173 173

prevention or response Women 40 - intervention Men 0 - # children released from armed Girls 28 - 305 305 2,000 3,125 forces and groups reintegrated Boys 94 - 604 604 with their families/communities #unaccompanied and Girls 22 - 110 117 separated children reunified with their primary caregiver or 1,750 2,400 Boys 49 - 107 110 provided with family-based care/alternative care services Education #children accessing formal or Girls 1,114 - 1,114 1,114 592,000 396,242 non-formal education, including

early learning Boys 737 - 737 737

#children receiving individual Girls 0 - 0 0 533,375 learning materials 532,120 Boys 0 - 0 0

#schools implementing safe 800 school protocols (infection 0 -

prevention and control) # children/adolescents Girls 0 - 0 0 15,000 25,000 accessing skills development Boys 0 - 0 0

programmes Women 0 - 0 0

Men 0 - 0 0 # children participating to the Girls 0 - 0 0 75,000 25,000 distance/home-based learning Boys 0 - 0 0 WASH # people accessing a sufficient Girls 400,000 4,276 - 10,235 10,235 910,000 quantity of safe water for Boys 4,049 - 9,790 9,790 drinking, cooking and personal Women 4,444 - 12,460 12,460 hygiene Men 4,231 - 12,466 12,466 Girls 2,530 - 4,508 4,508 # people accessing Boys 2,420 - 980,000 4,312 4,312 appropriately designed and 200,000 Women 3,080 - 5,488 5,488 managed latrines men 2,970 - 5,292 5,292 # girls and women accessing Girls 0 - menstrual hygiene 25,000 Women 0 - management services Girls 10,409 - 14,712 14,712 #people reached with Boys 9,956 - 14,072 14,072 handwashing behaviour 400,000 1,120,000 Women 12,672 - 17,911 17,911 change programmes Men 12,219 - 17,270 17,270 Social Protection Girls 0 - # households reached with Boys 0 - humanitarian cash transfers 9,000 Women 0 - across sectors Men 0 - Rapid Response Mechanism #Vulnerable people newly Girls affected Boys 225,000 9,292 - by the crisis rapidly provided Women with essential household items Men #Vulnerable people affected by Girls the crisis Boys 130,000 9,054 - benefiting from water, hygiene Women and sanitation interventions Men Communication for Development(c4d) #people reached through messaging on access to 3,000,000 1,269,554 - services #people participating in Girls 0 - engagement actions (for social Boys 0 - 700,000 and behavioral change) Women 0 - Men 0 - #people sharing their concerns Girls 0 - and asking Boys 0 - questions/clarifications to Women 0 - 25,000 address their needs through established feedback Men 0 - mechanisms

Annex B

Funding Status

Funds available Funding gap Other Resources Requirements Humanitarian Sector resources available from resources $ % used in 2020 received in 2021 2021 (Carry-over) Nutrition 15,200,000 4,885,742 10,314,258 68% Health and HIV/AIDS 3,800,000 623,914 390,170 1,032,126 1,753,790 46% WASH 13,000,000 90,000 559,014 12,350,986 95% Child Protection 8,200,000 623,913 641,052 6,935,035 85% Education 16,100,000 2,841,315 13,258,685 82% Social protection 2,400,000 300,000 2,100,000 88% and Cash Transfer C4D 2,400,000 1,461,066 938,934 39% RRM and Emergencies 13,100,000 1,262,742 5,619,203 6,218,055 47% Cluster/sector coordination 1,500,000 1,500,000 100% Total 75,700,000 2,600,569 390,170 17,339,517 55,369,744 73%