Your Excellency Mr. Prime Minister, Head of Government, and guest of honor;
Madam President of the Republic’s institutions;
Ministers;
Your Excellencies, Ambassadors and Heads of Diplomatic and Consular Missions;
Chief of Staff of the Central African Armed Forces;
Representative of the Director General of the Gendarmerie;
Representative of the Director General of the Police;
Heads of Agencies;
Dear Partners;
Dear Peacekeepers;
Dear Colleagues;
Allow me to begin by expressing my sincere gratitude to you, Mr. Prime Minister, for joining us in this celebration despite your busy schedule, just ten days after the formation of the first government of the 7th Republic.
I am delighted to see us gathered here to celebrate this International Day of Peacekeepers.
This year’s celebration carries special significance in the Central African Republic.
The exemplary cooperation between MINUSCA peacekeepers, Central African authorities at both national and local levels, and the population has enabled all Central African men and women to exercise their right to vote during the elections held in December 2025 and more recently in April.
All operations were successfully conducted thanks to the joint efforts of our military, police officers, and civilian personnel, working alongside their Central African counterparts.
Together, they made possible the holding of the first local elections since 1988, which, once the regional and municipal assemblies are established, will enable the people’s elected representatives to carry out decentralization across the 20 prefectures of the Central African Republic.
This achievement perfectly illustrates the theme of this year’s commemoration: “Investing in peace: consolidating and preserving the gains of peace.”
And this is not an isolated case.
We are witnessing concrete progress in the implementation of the Peace Agreement, the APPR-RCA.
We also note an increased presence of State officials and civil servants in the prefectures, municipalities, police stations, gendarmerie units, and courts.
Together, we have traveled this path to achieve these results, and together we are consolidating them into gains that form the foundation for sustainable stability, an essential condition for meeting the priorities and legitimate development expectations of the people and Government of the Central African Republic.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Distinguished guests,
These results have been achieved at the cost of great sacrifices.
Sacrifices borne by the Central African people and by our peacekeepers.
Since last May, ten of them have lost their lives on Central African soil, some while conducting operations during which they were the targets of intolerable attacks.
These attacks have never, and will never, undermine our determination to carry out our mission.
I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the commitment and dedication of our peacekeepers in their service to the Central African people, working alongside and in support of the Central African defense and security forces.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Distinguished guests,
Our mission, the mandate entrusted to us by the Security Council, is now entering a new phase.
The results achieved and the gains secured enable us to move forward. We are transitioning from a stabilization phase to one of consolidation.
This transition is normal and is part of the natural lifecycle of a peacekeeping mission, which is not intended to remain indefinitely in a country.
As was the case during the stabilization phase, this period of consolidation is being carried out in close consultation between the Mission and the Central African authorities and people.
The gains achieved remain fragile in certain sectors and regions. It is our collective responsibility to strengthen and consolidate them so that they can be preserved.
This new phase requires MINUSCA to adapt and reorganize its presence.
However, let me be clear: reorganization does not mean disengagement.
You will continue to see peacekeepers on the ground, conducting multi-day patrols over long distances, including in localities without a permanent MINUSCA base.
At the same time, we will continue to support the deployment of Defence and Security Forces to hard-to-reach areas.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Distinguished guests,
I would like to urge you all of us to continue investing together in peace and stability in the Central African Republic.
Investing in peace today means preserving, consolidating, and sustaining, for both present and future generations, the gains in peace, security and stability achieved by Central African people. These gains have been made possible through the continued and unwavering support, active solidarity and sacrifices of uniformed and civilian peacekeepers, who remain resolutely committed to serving peace in the Central African Republic, despite a challenging international context.
To each and every one of you, I wish a Happy International Day of UNPeacekeepers.
Thank you.
