On 27 March, roughly a week after the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in the Central African Republic (CAR), authorities temporarily restricted entry for non-nationals and grounded all flights. President Faustin Archange Touadéra announced additional measures, including the closure of schools, bars, and an obligation to inform health authorities of any suspected coronavirus cases. The […]
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DETENTION STATISTICS
Migration Detainee Entries
Not Available
2019
DETENTION CAPACITY
ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION
ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT DATA
PRISON DATA
POPULATION DATA
LEGAL & REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
Does the Country Have Specific Laws that Provide for Migration-Related Detention?
GROUNDS FOR DETENTION
LENGTH OF DETENTION
DETENTION INSTITUTIONS
PROCEDURAL STANDARDS & SAFEGUARDS
COSTS & OUTSOURCING
COVID-19 DATA
TRANSPARENCY
MONITORING
NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MONITORING BODIES
NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISMS (OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE)
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (NGOS)
GOVERNMENTAL MONITORING BODIES
INTERNATIONAL DETENTION MONITORING
INTERNATIONAL TREATIES & TREATY BODIES
International Treaties Ratified
Ratification Year
Observation Date
ICPED, International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
2016
2018
OP ICESCR, Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
2016
2018
CTOCSP, Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime
2006
2017
CTOCTP, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children
2006
2017
OPCAT, Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
2016
2016
CAT, Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
2016
2016
Ratio of relevant international treaties ratified
Ratio: 14/19
Relevant Recommendations or Observations Issued by Treaty Bodies
Treaty Body
Human Rights Committee
Recommendation Year
2020
Recommendation Excerpt
§ 32. The State party should: (a) Develop and adopt a legal framework and a national strategy for assisting and protecting internally displaced persons in accordance with the relevant international standards, including the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention) and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement; (b) Create conditions that are conducive to sustainable solutions for displaced persons and stateless refugees, including their voluntary and safe return; (c) Facilitate birth registration, including by raising public awareness and facilitating and expediting access to civil registry offices.
Sources
Human Rights Committee," Concluding observations on the third periodic report of the Central African Republic," CCPR/C/CAF/CO/3, 30 April 2020, https://uhri.ohchr.org/Document/File/f536242a-f8c4-4c91-b818-4802613224d9/0574F2C8-E118-44BF-BD8C-8B65F19AFB01
Treaty Body
Committee on the Rights of the Child
Recommendation Year
2017
Recommendation Excerpt
§ 65. "The Committee urges the State party to:
(a) Take all measures necessary to guarantee the rights and well-being of internally displaced children, including by providing access to clean water, adequate sanitation, food and shelter, and paying due attention to their needs in terms of health and education;
(b) Develop a system of psychosocial support and assistance for children who are internally displaced, refugees and returnees, addressing their special recovery needs after the traumatic experiences of war;
(c) Establish a mechanism to identify at the earliest possible stage children who may have been or are at risk of being recruited and/or used in hostilities and/or sexually abused by armed groups;
(d) Continue to cooperate with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and UNICEF in that regard....
77. In the light of its general comment No. 10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice, the Committee urges the State party to bring its juvenile justice system fully into line with the Convention and other relevant standards and, in particular:
(a) Ensure that children are not detained together with adults and that detention conditions are compliant with international standards, including with regard to access to education and health services;
(b) Train judges on children’s rights and establish juvenile justice procedures, promoting alternative measures to detention, such as diversion, probation, mediation, counselling or community service, wherever possible, and ensure that detention is used as a last resort only and for the shortest possible period of time."
(a) Take all measures necessary to guarantee the rights and well-being of internally displaced children, including by providing access to clean water, adequate sanitation, food and shelter, and paying due attention to their needs in terms of health and education;
(b) Develop a system of psychosocial support and assistance for children who are internally displaced, refugees and returnees, addressing their special recovery needs after the traumatic experiences of war;
(c) Establish a mechanism to identify at the earliest possible stage children who may have been or are at risk of being recruited and/or used in hostilities and/or sexually abused by armed groups;
(d) Continue to cooperate with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and UNICEF in that regard....
77. In the light of its general comment No. 10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice, the Committee urges the State party to bring its juvenile justice system fully into line with the Convention and other relevant standards and, in particular:
(a) Ensure that children are not detained together with adults and that detention conditions are compliant with international standards, including with regard to access to education and health services;
(b) Train judges on children’s rights and establish juvenile justice procedures, promoting alternative measures to detention, such as diversion, probation, mediation, counselling or community service, wherever possible, and ensure that detention is used as a last resort only and for the shortest possible period of time."
Sources
Committee on the Rights of the Child, "Concluding Observations on the Second Periodic Report of the Central African Republic," CRC/C/CAF/CO/2, 8 March 2017, https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CRC%2fC%2fCAF%2fCO%2f2&Lang=en
> UN Special Procedures
Relevant Recommendations or Observations by UN Special Procedures
Treaty Body
Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
Decision Date
2023
Case Details
(bb) Ensure that border management policies respect and fulfil human rights obligations, including through procedures for identification, assistance and protection of victims of trafficking, and also ensure protection against refoulement;
(cc) Take action to prevent trafficking in persons, especially women and children, among internally displaced persons, returnees and refugees;
(dd) Strengthen national and local coordination for action against trafficking, including through anti-trafficking committees, with participation by victims;
(ee) Provide sustainable resources to civil society to allow for the creation of an enabling environment for long-term partnerships to combat trafficking and assist victims;
(cc) Take action to prevent trafficking in persons, especially women and children, among internally displaced persons, returnees and refugees;
(dd) Strengthen national and local coordination for action against trafficking, including through anti-trafficking committees, with participation by victims;
(ee) Provide sustainable resources to civil society to allow for the creation of an enabling environment for long-term partnerships to combat trafficking and assist victims;
Sources
Human Rights Council, "Report of the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Siobhán Mullally*", 15 May 2024, United Nations General Assembly, (paragraph), https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/document/93369886-2fcb-4000-8ca2-86caedc6ded9
> UN Universal Periodic Review
Relevant Recommendations or Observations from the UN Universal Periodic Review
Recommendation Issued
No
Year Issued
2024
UPR Cycle
4th
Sources
Human Rights Council, "Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR)* Central African Republic" 26 January 2024, United Nations General Assembly, https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/g24/035/25/pdf/g2403525.pdf
Recommendation Issued
No
Year Issued
2014
Sources
Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review* Central African Republic, A/HRC/25/11, 6 January 2014, https://www.upr-info.org/sites/default/files/document/central_african_republic/session_17_-_october_2013/a_hrc_25_11_centralafricanrepublic_e.pdf
Recommendation Issued
No
Year Issued
2009
Sources
Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review * Central African Republic, A/HRC/12/2, 4 June 2009 https://www.upr-info.org/sites/default/files/document/central_african_republic/session_5_-_may_2009/ahrc122centralafricanrepublicef.pdf
HEALTH CARE PROVISION
HEALTH IMPACTS
COVID-19
Country Updates
On 27 March, roughly a week after the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in the Central African Republic (CAR), authorities temporarily restricted entry for non-nationals and grounded all flights. President Faustin Archange Touadéra announced additional measures, including the closure of schools, bars, and an obligation to inform health authorities of any suspected coronavirus cases. The Bangui airport reopened in July with new security measures, including health check and self-isolation protocols. As of 14 December, CAR had recorded 4,936 COVID-19 cases and 63 deaths.
In May, the UN allocated $12 million USD from its humanitarian fund to support a multisectoral emergency response in the Central African Republic (CAR). The funds are intended to be used to reduce the spread of COVID-19, including enabling partner organisations to implement priority projects in the health and water-hygiene sanitation sectors, manage internally displaced persons camps, as well as provide shelter, food, and essential household items.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported in May that humanitarian aid had been provided to 294,000 people in April to assist access to health, water, and hygienic materials. According to the UN, more than 2.6 million people in the country, approximately half the population, are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. According to UNHCR, there were 641,292 internally displaced persons as of 31 October 2020. Of these, the UN estimates that more than 467,000 live with host families while the rest live in overcrowded and unsanitary sites.
UNHCR also estimates that as of mid-2020, there were 296,190 refugees from CAR in Cameroon. According to the refugee agency, a voluntary repatriation operation that started in November 2019 was suspended in March 2020 as both countries closed their borders to prevent the spread of the virus. Now that the border closure has been lifted, UNHCR is attempting to facilitate voluntary returns. Improvements of the security situation in Bangui and other regions in CAR have enabled some 15,000 refugees in the North and South Ubangi Provinces to apply for voluntary repatriation. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, health and sanitary measures have been boosted, including the provision of masks, temperature screening, and the installation of hand-washing stations. Also, in order to ensure social distancing, the number of refugees per convoy was reduced to 65 people.
Government Agencies
Ministry of Interior - https://www.mininter.gov.rw/
Ministry of Foreign Affairs - https://mofa.gov.bs/country/central-african-republic/
International Organisations
UNHCR - https://www.unhcr.org/where-we-work/countries/central-african-republic
IOM - https://www.iom.int/countries/central-african-republic
NGO & Research Institutions
Human Rights Watch - https://www.hrw.org/africa/central-african-republic
Amnesty International - https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/africa/west-and-central-africa/central-african-republic/
Media
RSF - https://rsf.org/en/country/central-african-republic
