New Central African Republic President Seeks to Heal Old Wounds

Newly elected President Faustin-Archange Touadéra formed a cabinet comprising of allies and rivals to foster a healing process after years of warfare, according to Voice of America. Central African Republic (CAR) has been plagued by sectarian conflict between Muslim and Christian militias, and the new president deliberately isolated militia supporters on both sides to send a strong message.

Newly elected President Faustin-Archange Touadéra formed a cabinet comprising of allies and rivals to foster a healing process after years of warfare, according to Voice of America. Central African Republic (CAR) has been plagued by sectarian conflict between Muslim and Christian militias, and the new president deliberately isolated militia supporters on both sides to send a strong message.

Major conflict started in 2013, when Seleka Muslim rebels persecuted Christians and ousted ex-president François Bozizé, causing Christian militia members to respond with the same level of violence against Muslims. The fighting has left over 6,000 people dead, with up to a million people displaced from their homes.

Touadéra won over 60% of the vote in February, but his mandate comes with a long list of daunting tasks. CAR has dealt with decades of political instability, most notably rampant sectarian violence, which has hampered economic progress. Moreover, militia groups that extort money from nearby traders and businesses control many border areas and mining hubs.

Additionally, entrenched corruption has been left unabated by previous rulers, and the new president faces a monumental task in cleaning a system where many leaders benefit from the status quo. Touadéra is a former math teacher who governed as prime minister from 2008 to 2013.

He entered the presidential race as an independent candidate and remained neutral throughout the Christian-Muslim rivalry. His unbiased stance made him an attractive candidate, as many in the country grew weary of the bitter hatred permeating society.

Aside from securing political stability, he must also add innovation to the economy at a time when most people subsist from the agricultural sector, and the manufacturing sector is not developed enough to add significant growth.

The economy relies on commodity extraction, but natural resource exploitation is a major problem that kept many people destitute while preventing them from finding viable job opportunities. Over 60% of CAR’s citizens remain in poverty, and the nation is one of the poorest in the world.

Additionally, CAR suffers from a weak infrastructure base and an ill-equipped education system that prevents the mineral-rich nation from becoming a stable emerging market in the world economy.

With that, CAR has made advances in certain areas, as leadership regained acceptance into the African Union, while winning approval from the international community to resume diamond exports after security improvements. Officials must rely on donor aid to sustain operations, but financial aid is not the primary answer for a government that is dysfunctional at its core.