	Overview

The Central African Republic (CAR) has struggled to emerge from conflict and state collapse since 2013, when a rebel movement known as the Seleka seized control of the government. Faustin Archange Touadéra, a former prime minister who had cultivated a discreet public profile, was elected president. As during past crises in CAR, international forces have deployed since 2013 in an effort to stabilize the country. The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a small but brutal Ugandan-led militia, is active in the east, where it appears to have benefitted from CAR's recent instability. Current Issues for Policymakers

U.S. and other international policymakers are currently considering a range of questions regarding the response to the situation in CAR, including:
To what extent should donors transition from emergency humanitarian assistance toward development aid for CAR? (See " U.S. Policy and Aid ," below.) To improve U.N. efforts to prevent and punish sexual abuse and exploitation by peacekeepers in CAR? The United States has also provided funding for assistance to communities in LRA-affected areas, including humanitarian aid, early warning efforts, and reconciliation programs. U.S. Policy and Aid

U.S. engagement in CAR has historically been limited. As the crisis erupted in 2013, the Obama Administration significantly scaled up U.S. aid and diplomatic efforts to stem the surge of violence. The President issued Executive Order 13667 (2014) authorizing targeted sanctions against actors fueling the conflict; the State Department and Defense Department provided substantial support to African peacekeepers and French troops deploying to CAR; the President and other Administration officials engaged in public diplomacy outreach to the people of CAR; the State Department and USAID identified new funding for conflict mitigation, reconciliation, justice, and governance programs; and in the U.N. Security Council, the Administration supported the establishment of MINUSCA. The United States is also the top financial contributor to MINUSCA's budget (as with all U.N. peacekeeping operations), under the system of assessed contributions for U.N. peacekeeping. For FY2017, the State Department also requested $18.1 million in bilateral aid for CAR: $8 million in Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) funds for continuing voluntary support to African troop contributors to MINUSCA and for bilateral support to security sector reform; $5.7 million in International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement (INCLE) funds to continue efforts to establish a functioning criminal justice system; $4.3 million in Economic Support Fund (ESF) for peacebuilding programs; and $150,000 in International Military Education and Training (IMET) for military professionalization and to promote bilateral military ties. The CAR aid figures reported in the State Department's annual Congressional Budget Justification also do not include substantial funding that has been allocated through regionally- and centrally-managed programs, including for conflict-mitigation, security sector reform, and other special initiatives. In particular, Congress provided unspecified levels of funding for reconciliation and peacebuilding programs in CAR (most recently, §7042[a], Division K of P.L. 114-113 , the FY2016 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act) and for programs to assist civilians in areas affected by the LRA (§7042[f]). Similar provisions were included in the House version of the FY2017 foreign aid appropriations bill ( H.R. Other relevant legislation enacted in the 114 th Congress included the Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 ( P.L. 114-231 ). 211 (regarding genocide and mass atrocities), S.Res. Outlook and Issues for Congress

Some observers assert that U.S. response to the conflict in CAR helped avert a much larger crisis. Congress may also weigh the relative priority of the CAR crisis in the context of competing priorities elsewhere in Africa and beyond.
The Central African Republic (CAR) is emerging from a crisis that began when rebels overthrew the national government in 2013, ushering in a chaotic and violent period. A new president, Faustin Archange Touadéra, was elected in 2016, but gains remain fragile. Militias that have targeted civilians on the basis of religious and ethnic identity continue to operate in much of the country, posing challenges to governance, reconciliation, and accountability. Violence has caused large population displacements, weakening an already tiny economy and placing strains on finite international aid and peacekeeping resources.
U.S. responses to the crisis in CAR have included:
humanitarian assistance; aid funding for conflict mitigation, peacebuilding, and rule-of-law programs; diplomatic and financial support for a U.N. peacekeeping operation, MINUSCA; additional support for African and French troops that have deployed to CAR; public diplomacy initiatives; and targeted financial and travel sanctions against actors viewed as fueling conflict.
Key issues for the 115th Congress include the authorization, appropriation, and oversight of U.S. aid and peacekeeping funding and of U.S. policy toward CAR. The context for these considerations will depend to some extent on the approach of the incoming Donald Trump Administration to CAR and regional issues. The situation in CAR also has implications for several broad policy challenges in which Congress has displayed interest:
political stability in the wider central Africa region; U.S. efforts to counter the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a small but brutal militia active in eastern CAR and neighboring countries; the U.S. role in preventing and addressing "mass atrocities" in foreign countries; trends in wildlife poaching and other cross-border criminal activity in the region; religious freedom in Africa; and the effectiveness of U.N. peacekeeping and responses to peacekeeper abuses.
The FY2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 114-113) provided that funding appropriated for aid to CAR "shall be made available for reconciliation and peacebuilding programs, including activities to promote inter-faith dialogue at the national and local levels, and for programs to prevent crimes against humanity." A similar provision is included in H.R. 5912 (Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2017), and similar provisions were enacted in prior foreign aid appropriations measures. The FY2016 Act also provided funding for assisting civilians in LRA-affected areas, such as southeastern CAR, as did prior aid appropriations measures. Other relevant legislation enacted in the 114th Congress includes the Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (P.L. 114-231). The 113th Congress held several hearings on CAR in the House and Senate.
The Obama Administration allocated an estimated $14 million in bilateral aid for CAR in FY2016 and requested $18 million for FY2017—not including emergency humanitarian aid and other regionally- and centrally-managed funds, such as conflict-mitigation and LRA-related assistance. The Administration also allocated an estimated $287 million from FY2016 appropriations for U.S. assessed contributions to MINUSCA's budget. The United States is by far the largest bilateral humanitarian donor in CAR, with over $99 million in funding provided in FY2016.