By Judith Ugwumadu | 6 December 2013
The European Union has committed €50m to support the foreign military operation in the Central African Republic. The EU responded to a request from the African Union for funding as the political and humanitarian situation in CAR has continued to deteriorate following a coup.
Funding will be channelled to the African-led International Support Mission in the CAR (AFISM-CAR), which launched this summer in a bid to help stabilise the country, said European commissioner for development Andris Piebalgs.
He added that the money would also go towards the protection of local people, the creation of conditions conducive to the provision of humanitarian aid and reforms to the security and defence sector.
Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, said: ‘I commend the tireless efforts of our African partners to work towards stabilizing the Central African Republic. This latest EU contribution... will help the AFISM-CAR to contribute, in close coordination with the United Nations and other partners, to a resolution of this crisis.’
Ashton urged CAR’s transitional authorities to take responsibility for an ‘immediate cessation of hostilities’ and to ‘implement without delay the transition agreement’.
She said this would allow the holding of elections and a return to constitutional order by February 2015.
The EU said that financial support should be mobilised through the African Peace Facility, created in 2004 – part of the European Development Fund – and should cover the costs of allowances, accommodation and feeding the troops deployed in the field.
Salaries of civilian AFISM-CAR personnel and various operational costs such as transport, communication or medical services are also expected to be supported by the facility.
‘This support will be essential for the proper functioning of the mission,’ added the EU.
However, it admitted that assistance to CAR had been ‘slow’ because of the security and institutional situation in the African region, but added that its development cooperation was ‘never been suspended’.
To this end, EU projects worth €23m are being prepared using funds from the 10th European Development Fund. This must be decided on before the end of 2013.
‘The immediate priority, once security is restored, will be to support the process of transition towards the restoration of democratic institutions and the provision of basic social services to the population,’ the EU said.
Meanwhile, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague announced today that Britain would provide air transport assistance to France for CAR to respond to the security and humanitarian crisis.
‘We are determined to play our part in helping to address the violence. We have therefore agreed with the government of France that we will help move French equipment to CAR by means of a UK C17 transport aircraft. Three separate flights will take place this month, with the first one due to land in CAR shortly,’ Hague said.
This comes on top of £10m in UK aid announced on November 30, he added.
Yesterday, the UN Security Council approved the deployment of African and French troops to the region, months after the coup escalated into chaos and violence.
