Security Challenges Persist In CAR Amid Preparations For December Election - MINUSCA

The Central African Republic still faces security challenges after the signing of a February 2019 peace deal as some militant groups have stepped up pressure in the run-up to the December general election, Mankeur Ndiaye, the UN special representative for CAR, told Sputnik in an interview

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 29th October, 2020) The Central African Republic still faces security challenges after the signing of a February 2019 peace deal as some militant groups have stepped up pressure in the run-up to the December general election, Mankeur Ndiaye, the UN special representative for CAR, told Sputnik in an interview.

The UN Security Council was informed last week about "the resurgence of violence and escalation in some parts of the country," Ndiaye said. Of particular concern were the activities of 3R and UPC armed groups, which delayed the voter registration in the northwestern Nana-Mambere and Ouham-Pende prefectures and in the central Ouaka prefecture. The UN stabilization mission in the country (MINUSCA) and the car armed forces had to step in and conduct an operation in the west.

"Military pressure combined with dialogue initiated under the leadership of the guarantors, the African Union and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), helped to improve the security situation and enabled the completion of voter registration process in North-Eastern region of CAR.

In other parts of the country, the situation remains calm although the security challenges persist," he added.

Ndiaye noted that he had inked a plan with the CAR government and the national election authority in early October, under which MINUSCA Force and police components will support the defense and security forces in "securing the whole electoral process."

CAR's stability, meanwhile, is also "intertwined with regional stability," as porous borders contribute to illegal trafficking, the MINUSCA chief concluded.