The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners' peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations. With over 6,000 personnel spread across 80 countries, UNOPS offers its partners the logistical, technical and management knowledge they need, where they need it. By implementing around 1,000 projects for our partners at any given time, UNOPS makes significant contributions to results on the ground, often in the most challenging environments.
Project Information:
The Central African Republic (CAR) is a highly fragile country with a history of recurrent conflict, the most recent of which took place in 2013 and to a lesser extent in late 2020. The violence that followed the 2013 crisis greatly damaged public assets and infrastructure, disrupted service delivery, and further weakened the social fabric, and exacerbated people’s poverty and vulnerability to shocks. As a result, roughly one-quarter of the population was internally displaced or had to flee as refugees to neighboring countries. Forced displacement has disrupted livelihoods, depleted the assets of the poor, and put an additional strain on service delivery in areas of displacement.
Improvements in the security situation have resulted in the voluntary return of displaced populations, primarily in the northwest and southwest of the country. It is estimated that about 15 to 20 percent of the displaced population has returned spontaneously. However, the return of the displaced to the areas of origin remains fragile and dependent on the overall security situation. The reintegration of displaced populations and provision of social safety nets is a short-term priority and essential to the stabilization and economic revitalization of the country.
To this end, the World Bank is supporting the Government of CAR to increase access to the establishment of social safety nets to communities affected by forced displacement. The project will be implemented through UNOPS including but not limited to the following towns: Bangui, Bossangoa and Bria
The project adopts a multifaceted approach in support of communities affected by displacement in CAR and it entails 1) financial support to the most vulnerable households among displaced populations and the communities affected by COVID19 and the recent floods, 2) Supporting the government of CAR in the training and capacity development of relevant ministerial bodies and entities on social safety nets and Cash transfer mechanisms.
Based in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), since 1991, the UNOPS Central Africa Hub (CDOH) covers eleven countries: Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central Africa, Comoros, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Rwanda. The Hub has forged strong working relationships with international partners, United Nations agencies, including United Nations missions, and governments of Central African countries.