The Central African Republic is a landlocked country in central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan on the east, the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the south, and Cameroon on the west. Most of the CAR consists of Sudano-Guinean savannas but it also includes a Sahelo-Sudanese zone in the north and an Equatorial forest zone in the south. Two thirds of the country lies in the basins of the Ubangi river, which flows south into the Congo River, while the remaining third lies in the basin of the Shari river which flows north into Lake Chad. Since most of the territory is located in the Ubangi and Shari river basins, the French called the colony it carved out in this region Ubangi-Shari, or Oubangui-Chari in French.
Central African Republic: Silent Crisis Crying Out For Help
In a continent beset with bloody conflicts often triggering banner headlines, the Central African Republic (CAR), located in an unstable triangle bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo, southern Sudan and Chad, is a silent crisis crying out for increased international donor support and media attention. A year ago, with the world’s eyes riveted on Iraq, CAR suffered another in a long history of coups and uprisings when General Bozize led an army of insurgents to topple elected President Ange-Felix Patasse in March 2003. Today, transitional institutions have been established and an electoral calendar that envisions elections in January 2005 has been issued. Nevertheless, the overall situation remains fragile and volatile. In spite of its economic potential - rich in timber, gold, diamonds and uranium - CAR ranks 154th among the world’s 174 poorest countries with 95% of its population living on less than US two dollars a day. Over a million of its 3.7 million population are isolated and without access to health care, education and basic services. With 200,000 people internally displaced, farming has been disrupted and the country’s food security is precarious. Some 15% of CAR’s population suffers from HIV/AIDS, making it one of the world’s 10 worst hit countries, while the number of children orphaned by AIDS continues to escalate. Preventable diseases like polio, malaria, measles and meningitis, already at epidemic levels, have reached a new high and take a daily toll.
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