Returning Home to New Challenges
In 2024, the United Nations reported that 2.4 million people — nearly half of population — in the Central African Republic (CAR) required humanitarian assistance after years of military confrontations and instability. One in five people were forced to flee their homes to other regions within CAR and over the border into Cameroon. Now, about 679,000 people remain in exile and 476,000 are displaced within the CAR due to insecurity and limited access to basic services.
Although the conflict is ongoing, the security situation has gradually stabilized along the border. Refugees are returning to CAR from Cameroon, especially to the prefectures of Nana-Mambéré and Ouham-Pendé. In December 2024, at least 214,000 people had returned from Cameroon according to OCHA’s Humanitarian Needs Overview. But instead of returning to their homes and former way of life, they are returning to devastation left behind from the conflict.
Aissatou, a refugee living in Cameroon, was one of the many people who decided to return to her village in Nana-Mambéré once the violence had stabilized. When she arrived back in CAR, she faced daunting challenges. Limited availability of water and land made finding a livelihood difficult. “We didn’t have drinking water, and everyone went to get water over a mile away or in the bush. People were often sick: they had stomach aches and diarrhea,” recalls Aissatou. As families were forced to travel long distances to fetch water, quarrels and even physical attacks could break out. For women and girls, the long walk also exposed them to heightened risks of gender-based violence.
Meeting Immediate Needs: Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene
Since 2024, Action Against Hunger has built six boreholes and rehabilitated existing ones in Nana-Mambéré. The water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) project was launched with the support the Crisis and Support Center (CDCS). These interventions now provide safe water for 4,000 returnees living along the border of Cameroon and CAR. By easing pressure on water sources, the project helps reduce inter-community tensions and strengthen social cohesion.
Staff test water with ANEA National Agency for Water and Sanitation.
Aissatou is proud to play her part as Treasurer of the Bore Haoussa Water Points Committee in Gallo. Twice a month, she joins four other members of the Haoussa water points committee to discuss garden and water management and decide on necessary repairs. Water Point Committees—composed of both returnees and host community members—were established as part of Action Against Hunger’s program to help ensure program longevity and equitable access to water. “We make sure that the water point committees are always mixed to prevent one group or the other from being marginalized. Supporting the two communities allows us to create this link. They are now carrying out activities together,” explains Degoto. They also open decision-making spaces to women. Today, of the 35 members across the committees formed, 20 are women, including 13 returnees and 7 from the host community.
Haoussa Water Points Committee that Aissatou meets with to discuss garden and water management.
Building for the Future: Food Security and Livelihoods
Water, sanitation and hygiene access is not the only challenge returnees, refugees, and host communities face in CAR and Cameroon. Hunger remains a daily threat. In the Bouar region, many households are completely market-dependent, meaning they cannot produce their own food, and food insecurity is classified as an IPC Level 3 (Crisis). Families also have mental health struggles after years of conflict, displacement, and resource scarcity.
To build resilience in CAR and Cameroon, Action Against Hunger launched the SOLID program, funded by the European Union (EU) and in partnership with DRC, CARE and NRC. It is a set of Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL) responses, mental health services, and WASH interventions designed to complement the immediate needs addressed by the ongoing CDCS-funded WASH program. “This allows us to work in depth on social problems and to strengthen the capacities and resilience of the populations,” says Rodrigue Gnoula, Coordinator of the Action Against Hunger base in Bouar.
FSL interventions include training, agricultural tools, and the promotion of agro-ecological practices using local seeds and fertilizers. “We have invested in structures that will be sustainable, such as water towers and boreholes, and we plan, with the SOLID program, to build five new market gardening boreholes to support farmers’ organizations,” adds Samson Degoto.
Rodrigue Gnoula, Coordinator of the Action Against Hunger base in Bouar.
For individuals like Pélagie, these programs mean new opportunities. She received a chicken coop, eleven chickens, and training in poultry hygiene and feeding. “Currently, I have 28 eggs and five chicks. When I have more chicks, I will sell some of them,” she says.
Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) are established as part of the FSL response, providing financial pathways to resilience. Members learn how to save, borrow, and invest in small businesses such as livestock or trade. A villager from Tédoua explains: “I went through a nine-month cycle with, at the beginning, a share purchase of 500 CFA francs (the equivalent of 0.89 USD. I took out a loan from VSLAs to start selling palm oil and basic necessities. The credit allowed me to buy more products. The VSLA training has given me a sense of where to keep my money. My savings allowed me to enroll my child in school.”
Lasting Impact and Continuing Needs
Many challenges remain for the people living along the Central African Republic and Cameroonian border. In just four years, overall humanitarian funding in CAR has fallen by more than 50%, leaving many families uncertain about their future. “Nearly 1,000 people fetch water from the borehole. But sometimes women can’t find water. We need more drilling, but not only. We need shelter and more access to food,” concludes Aissatou. Action Against Hunger is continuing to respond. The SOLID program will support 71,423 returnees and host community members in CAR and 83,770 in Cameroon.
