Humanitarian Bulletin

Highlights

• In 2026, the humanitarian community in CAR plans to assist 1.3 million most vulnerable people. US$ 264.1 million is required.

• In one month, over 8,000 people were displaced while fleeing violence in the northwest.

• Over 42,000 people have been preventively displaced in two months due to the escalating insecurity in the southeast.

Read the full update.

In January 2026, eight incidents affected humanitarian workers compared to 15 incidents reported in December 2025, representing a 47 per cent decrease. This reduction may be linked to a lower number of humanitarian actors present during the holiday period, the end of the first round of elections, as well as the reduced presence of humanitarian actors due to declining funding.

The majority of incidents (75%) were of a criminal nature, including armed robberies, thefts, and an armed intrusion, illustrating the persistence of an unstable security environment directly affecting humanitarian personnel, vehicles, and residences. One humanitarian worker was injured during an attack at his home. One threat incident and one movement restriction incident were also reported.

International NGOs were the most affected (six incidents, or 75 per cent), followed by United Nations agencies (two incidents, or 25 per cent). The most affected prefectures were Bangui (50 per cent) and Haut-Mbomou (25 per cent). For more information, click here.

As of 31 December 2025, the Central African Republic had an estimated 427,479 internally displaced persons (IDPs). Among them, 13 per cent (56,729) were living in sites and gathering areas, while 87 per cent (370,750) were staying with host families. This represents a decrease of 0.2 per cent (835 individuals) in the total number of displacements compared to November 2025, when 428,314 IDPs were recorded. This decrease is mainly attributable to updated site data, reflecting worsening living conditions, limited access to humanitarian assistance, and the implementation of return projects, particularly in Bria (Haute-Kotto).

From January to December 2025, 27 operational partners delivered monetary assistance—primarily in cash—in 42 localities, reaching 438,235 beneficiaries for a total of US$17.1. This corresponds to 24.35 per cent of the people targeted for the 2025 humanitarian response and 5.27 per cent of the plan’s required funding.

The 2025 results confirm the positive trajectory initiated in 2024: cash transfers continue to be confirmed as the preferred modality, representing nearly 94 per cent of both beneficiaries and transferred amounts. Electronic transfers and vouchers remain marginal (0.86% and 5.1% of beneficiaries, respectively; 3.19% and 2.82% of amounts), reflecting households’ strong preference for cash as a flexible, simple, and logistically efficient mechanism.

Funding remains strongly concentrated in food security (53%) and Multi-Purpose Cash (MPC) assistance (38.5%), which together account for more than 91 per cent of financial resources. This concentration underscores the importance of aligning interventions with clearly identified strategic priorities. The distribution between emergency and resilience support has also improved, with 54.15% of funds allocated to emergency activities and 45.85% to resilience, illustrating the added value of approaches that combine immediate response with longer-term recovery.

Additionally, the number of actors slightly decreased—27 compared with 31 in 2024—with a minimal reduction in geographical coverage (from 45 localities in 2024 to 42 in 2025). This represents a consolidation rather than a contraction, indicating a strengthening of interventions in existing priority areas.

Overall, 2025 highlights several key lessons: the predominance of cash as a modality, the concentration of resources in priority sectors, a more balanced approach between emergency and resilience, and greater institutional and geographical consolidation. Together, these elements demonstrate the growing strategic maturity of the humanitarian cash transfer system and its ability to effectively respond to urgent needs while supporting community resilience.

Humanitarian needs in the Central African Republic (CAR) remained significant during the first half of 2025, even though some regions experienced improvements. The situation is marked by a critical gap between the population’s needs, the targets set by the Humanitarian Response Plan, and the assistance delivered. 

The Humanitarian Response Plan aims to assist 1.8 million people, representing 73 per cent of the total population in need. However, in the first half of the year, only 561,000 people were reached (32 per cent of the initial target). Among them were 313,000 women and 249,000 men. In comparison, during the same period in 2024, 1.2 million people were reached, accounting for 63 per cent of the planned target. 

This shortfall in the response is directly linked to a funding gap. Of the USD 326.1 million required, only USD 82.8 million had been received by mid-year, representing a coverage rate of 24 per cent. At the same time in 2024, 38 per cent of the required funding had already been mobilized. This major financial constraint is seriously hindering humanitarian actors' ability to reach targeted populations, including through the closure of some field offices. The effectiveness of the response varies significantly across prefectures, revealing unequal access exacerbated by factors such as impassable roads, insecurity, and the closure of some humanitarian bases due to funding constraints.

Insecurity in certain parts of the country and natural disasters, along with massive population displacements, remain the main factors of the humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR). This, combined with insecurity in southern neighboring Chad and the war in Sudan have triggered largest population movements towards CAR. In 2024, 2.8 million people are extremely vulnerable in CAR that humanitarian assistance alone is not sufficient to restore their well-being. Among them,1.9 million are targeted by the current Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).

The CAR Humanitarian Fund (CAR HF) received a total of US$13 million this year, representing 14% per cent of the funding received under the 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan. Through a reserve allocation of $3.5 million, the CAR HF allocated $3 million in February for the response against gender-based violence, targeting more than 74,000 people and thus representing 25 per cent of the sector’s financial target for 2024. This allocation also allowed for an emergency international resupply of inputs to take care of nearly 4,000 children suffering from moderate acute malnutrition. These responses are currently being implemented through seven projects carried out by seven partners. Among them, three National non-governmental organizations (NNGO) directly received more than 27 per cent of the funds.

Between January and May, the OCHA CAR Humanitarian Financing Unit: 1) organized two in-person meetings with the CAR HF Advisory Committee, including one during the visit of the OCHA Donor Support Group (ODSG) in April, 2) trained 142 participants from NNGOs, 9% of whom work in Women-Led Organizations (WLOs) on different topics p, 3) conducted capacity assessments of 32 NGOs, including 25 NNGOs. A total of 14 were deemed eligible for future CAR HF funding, including 5 WLOs.