Humanitarian Aid, Peacebuilding, and Development
The Central African Republic is heavily dependent upon multilateral foreign aid and the presence of numerous NGOs which provide services which the government fails to provide. As one UNDP official put it, the CAR is a country "sous serum", or a country metaphorically hooked up to an IV. (Mehler 2005:150). The very presence of numerous foreign personnel and organizations in the country, including peacekeepers and even refugee camps, provides an important source of revenue for many Central Africans.
The country is self-sufficient in food crops, but much of the population lives at a subsistence level. Livestock development is hindered by the presence of the tsetse fly.
In 2006 due to ongoing violence, over 50,000 in the country's northwest were at risk of starvation, and this was only averted thanks to United Nations support.
Read more about this topic: Central African Republic
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