Central African Republic

Location

• Central Africa, north of Democratic Republic of the Congo
• landlocked; almost the precise center of Africa

Population

Notable Population Centers

City	Population	Note
Bangui	812,407	Capital
Bimbo	348,802
Bégoua	264,067
Carnot	129,032
Berbérati	103,713
Bambari	83,029
Bouar	71,680
Bossangoa	55,353
Kaga-Bandoro	55,047
Bangassou	54,059

Size

• 240,534 square miles
• 622,984 square kilometers
• slightly smaller than Texas; about four times the size of Georgia

History

The Central African Republic (CAR) is a perennially weak state that sits at the crossroads of ethnic and linguistic groups in the center of the African continent. Among the last areas of Sub-Saharan Africa to be drawn into the world economy, its introduction into trade networks around the early 1700s fostered significant competition among its population. The local population sought to benefit from the lucrative Atlantic, trans-Saharan, and Indian Ocean trade in enslaved people and ivory. Slave raids aided by the local populations fostered animosity between ethnic groups that remains today. The territory was established as a French colony named Ubangui-Shari in 1903, and France modeled its administration of the colony after the Belgian Congo, subcontracting control of the territory to private companies that collected rubber and ivory. Although France banned the domestic slave trade in CAR in the 1910s, the private companies continued to exploit the population through forced labor. The colony of Ubangi-Shari gained independence from France as the Central African Republic in 1960, but the death of independence leader Barthelemy BOGANDA six months prior led to an immediate struggle for power. CAR’s political history has since been marred by a series of coups, the first of which brought Jean-Bedel BOKASSA to power in 1966. Widespread corruption and intolerance for any political opposition characterized his regime. In an effort to prolong his mandate, BOKASSA named himself emperor in 1976 and changed the country’s name to the Central African Empire. His regime’s economic mismanagement culminated in widespread student protests in 1979 that were violently suppressed by security forces. BOKASSA fell out of favor with the international community and was overthrown in a French-backed coup in 1979. After BOKASSA’s departure, the country’s name once again became the Central African Republic. CAR’s fifth coup in 2013 unseated President Francois BOZIZE after the Seleka, a mainly Muslim rebel coalition, seized the capital and forced BOZIZE to flee the country. The Seleka's widespread abuses spurred the formation of mainly Christian self-defense groups that called themselves the anti-Balaka, which have also committed human rights abuses against Muslim populations in retaliation. Since the rise of these groups, conflict in CAR has become increasingly ethnoreligious, although focused on identity rather than religious ideology. Elections in 2016 installed independent candidate Faustin-Archange TOUADERA as president; he was reelected in 2020. A peace agreement signed in 2019 between the government and the main armed factions has had little effect, and armed groups remain in control of large swaths of the country's territory. TOUADERA's United Hearts Movement has governed the country since 2016, and a new constitution approved by referendum on 30 July 2023 effectively ended term limits, creating the potential for TOUADERA to extend his rule.

Climate

tropical; hot, dry winters; mild to hot, wet summers

Terrain

vast, flat to rolling plateau; scattered hills in northeast and southwest

Languages

French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages

Religions

Roman Catholic 34.6%, Protestant 15.7%, other Christian 22.9%, Muslim 13.8%, ethnic religionist 12%, Baha'i 0.2%, agnostic/atheist 0.7% (2020 est.)note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the Christian majority

Government

presidential republic

• Constitution: history: several previous; latest constitution passed by a national referendum on 30 July 2023 and validated by the Constitutional Court on 30 August 2023amendment process: proposals require support of the government, two thirds of the National Council of Transition, and assent by the "Mediator of the Central African" crisis; passage requires at least three-fourths majority vote by the National Council membership; non-amendable constitutional provisions include those on the secular and republican form of government, fundamental rights and freedoms, amendment procedures, or changes to the authorities of various high-level executive, parliamentary, and judicial officials
• Political Parties and Leaders: n/a
• Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
• Legal System: civil law system based on the French model
• Executive Branch: chief of state: President Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA (since 30 March 2016)head of government: Prime Minister Félix MOLOUA (since 7 February 2022)cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the presidentelection/appointment process: current president was directly elected for 5-year term; constitutional referendum in July 2023 removed term limits and instituted 7-year termsmost recent election date: 27 December 2020election results: 2020: Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA reelected president in first round; percent of vote - Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA (independent) 53.9%, Anicet Georges DOLOGUELE (URCA) 21%, other 25.1%2015: Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA elected president in the second round; percent of vote in first round - Anicet-Georges DOLOGUELE (URCA) 23.7%, Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA (independent) 19.1%, Desire KOLINGBA (RDC) 12%, Martin ZIGUELE (MLPC) 11.4%, other 33.8%; percent of vote in second round - Faustin-Archange TOUADÉRA 62.7%, Anicet-Georges DOLOGUELE 37.3%expected date of next election: December 2025
• Judicial Branch: highest court(s): Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (number of judges unknown); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges, at least 3 of whom are women)judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the president; Constitutional Court judge appointments - 2 by the president, 1 by the speaker of the National Assembly, 2 elected by their peers, 2 are advocates elected by their peers, and 2 are law professors elected by their peers; judges serve 7-year non-renewable termssubordinate courts: high courts; magistrates' courts
• Legislative Branch: legislature name: National Assembly (Assemblée nationale)legislative structure: unicameralnumber of seats: 140 (all directly elected)electoral system: plurality/majorityscope of elections: full renewalterm in office: 5 yearsmost recent election date: 12/27/2020 to 7/25/2021parties elected and seats per party: United Hearts Movement (MCU) (61); National Movement of Independents (MOUNI) (9); Union for Central African Renewal (URCA) (7); Independents (17); Other (39)percentage of women in chamber: 11.4%expected date of next election: December 2025note 1: on 27 December 2020, the day of first round elections, voting in many electoral areas was disrupted by armed groups; on 13 February 2021, President TOUADERA announced that new first round elections would be held on 27 February 2021 for those areas controlled by armed groups and the second round on 14 March 2021; ultimately, two additional rounds were held on 23 May and 25 July 2021 in areas that continued to suffer from election security problemsnote 2: in accordance with article 98 of the constitution published in August 2023, the parliamentary term has increased from five to seven years and will be first applied to the legislature due to be elected in late 2025

Demographic Profile

n/a

Economy

• enormous natural resources; extreme poverty; weak public institutions and infrastructure; political and gender-based violence have led to displacement of roughly 25% of population; Bangui-Douala corridor blockade reduced activity and tax collection; strong agricultural performance offset COVID-19 downturn
• Budget: revenues: $360.48 million (2021 est.)expenditures: $462.104 million (2021 est.)note: central government revenues and expenses (excluding grants/extrabudgetary units/social security funds) converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated
• Credit Rating: n/a
• Natural Resources: diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower
• Industries: gold and diamond mining, logging, brewing, sugar refining
• Agricultural Products: cassava, groundnuts, yams, coffee, maize, sesame seeds, taro, sugarcane, beef, milk (2023)note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage
• Land Use: agricultural land: 9% (2022 est.)arable land: 2.9% (2022 est.)permanent crops: 1.3% (2022 est.)permanent pasture: 4.8% (2022 est.)forest: 35.7% (2022 est.)other: 55.3% (2022 est.)
• Labor Force by Occupation: n/a
• Imports
• Imported Commodities: refined petroleum, cars, packaged medicine, vaccines, tanks and armored vehicles (2023)note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
• Import Partners: China 16%, Cameroon 14%, France 8%, Belgium 6%, Cote d'Ivoire 5% (2023)note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
• Exports
• Exported Commodities: gold, wood, diamonds, vehicle parts/accessories, cotton (2023)note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
• Export Partners: UAE 54%, China 14%, France 6%, Turkey 5%, Belgium 4% (2023)note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports