Few observers in 2014, the year MINUSCA was established, would have predicted the progress the Central African Republic has achieved today. At the time, violence was widespread, armed groups were entrenched across much of the country and State institutions faced immense challenges in re-establishing their presence nationwide.
The country’s challenges have not disappeared. Armed groups remain active in some areas and regional instability continues to affect the north-east. Yet the Central African Republic has become one of the clearest examples in recent years of a United Nations peacekeeping mission helping a country move from widespread conflict towards greater stability, stronger institutions and renewed political participation.
Peace is delivering results
The turning point came with the signing of the 2019 Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation, which has gradually evolved from a political commitment into a framework delivering tangible results. By late 2025, eleven of the fourteen signatory armed groups had formally dissolved. An important step came with the signing of the 19 April and 19 November 2025 N’Djamena peace agreements with three main armed groups, followed by the disarmament and demobilization of over 1,900 ex-combatants, including 44 women, since July 2025.
Progress was also visible at the ballot box. In December 2025, Central Africans went to the polls in combined historic presidential, legislative, regional and local elections, followed by second-round and by-elections in April 2026. Beyond the peaceful and orderly organization of the vote, facilitated by MINUSCA good offices, the elections demonstrated the country’s growing ability to extend democratic processes across its territory. With support from MINUSCA, electoral materials reached some of the most remote communities and security arrangements enabled voting in areas where access had previously been constrained. In Haut-Mbomou in the south-east, for example, polling took place in April in Bambouti and Zémio, after voting had been impossible there during the first round. More than 2.4 million voters were registered, turnout reached 52.4 per cent, up significantly from 35.3 per cent in the 2020 presidential election, and by October 2026 elected local officials had taken office in three quarters of the country’s municipalities.
Perhaps the most meaningful sign of progress, however, is the gradual return of State authority and enhanced civilian protection. Areas once beyond the reach of public institutions are increasingly served by administrative authorities, defense forces and internal security services. With logistical support from MINUSCA, the Government has extended its presence into remote prefectures while humanitarian access has been preserved in difficult environments.
A success recognized far beyond Bangui
The progress achieved in the Central African Republic has been recognized well beyond Bangui. During a visit ahead of the 2025 elections, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, described the country as being on a “positive trajectory”, pointing to improvements in security, the disarmament of armed groups and the strengthening of State institutions. He emphasized that the electoral calendar was determined by the Central African authorities themselves, while noting that improved security provides the foundation for development and economic recovery.
The emphasis on national ownership has remained a defining feature of the country’s progress. Addressing the General Assembly in September 2026, President Faustin Archange Touadéra defended the choice of dialogue, reconciliation and negotiated disarmament as the path to peace, despite criticism from some quarters. He also made clear that, amid calls by Member States for reforms to UN peacekeeping, any transition from MINUSCA should be guided by conditions on the ground rather than by predetermined timelines. A month later, Marius Nzessioue, Permanent Representative of the Central African Republic to the United Nations, reiterated before the Security Council that the transfer of responsibilities must reflect operational, institutional and financial realities, calling for a joint assessment of the country’s readiness.
In June 2026, Jérôme Bonnafont, France’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, described developments in the Central African Republic as proof that peacekeeping operations remain “effective and, in some respects, irreplaceable instruments”. France later argued that the transfer of responsibilities should proceed in a “resolute and controlled manner”. Similar messages came from across the Security Council. Greece underscored that MINUSCA had demonstrated the tangible value of UN peacekeeping, Denmark described the Mission as one of the clearest examples of what sustained international engagement can achieve, and the United Kingdom stressed that any transition should be gradual, carefully sequenced and grounded in realities on the ground.
The challenge now is to protect the gains
Success in peacekeeping is not only about helping to restore stability. It is also about creating the conditions for a responsible transition. In the Central African Republic, that conversation has already begun. As national institutions assume greater responsibilities, both the Government and its international partners have emphasized that any transfer of tasks must remain gradual, realistic and guided by conditions on the ground. The objective is not an accelerated exit, but the preservation of hard-won gains. As Jean-Pierre Lacroix has warned, a premature withdrawal could jeopardize the progress achieved over the past decade.
Those gains, moreover, remain fragile. Insecurity remains a concern in the south-east, while regional instability continues to reverberate across the country’s borders, particularly in the north-east. The deadly attack on Am-Dafock in June 2026, which displaced thousands and temporarily disrupted local security, served as a reminder that the threat posed by armed groups has not disappeared. Financial pressures are also mounting, raising concerns about the resources available to sustain progress at a critical moment. Yet peacekeeping should ultimately be judged not by whether all challenges have disappeared, but by whether a country has developed the capacity and resilience to sustain peace and stability.
The lesson of the Central African Republic is not that peacekeeping, on its own, guarantees success. It succeeds when national leadership, international support and political commitment align behind a common objective. In the Central African Republic, that alignment has produced tangible results. At a time when the value of peacekeeping is increasingly questioned, and with the Security Council due to renew MINUSCA mandate by 15 November, that success deserves not only recognition, but protection.
